Star Wars: The Ghost
by CaptainNate21
Summary: On Coruscant, the Empire keeps the undesirables segregated down on the lower levels of the city. On level 1256, the people are left to fend for themselves against disease, famine, violent criminals, and random raids from the Imperials. Born and raised on the streets down here, a Givin named Dex Romo decides he's destined for greater things.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1 – Crap Job**

**Location: Coruscant, the Imperial City, Level 1256, in the sewer system  
Time: 4 Years Before the Battle of Yavin**

_Goddamn dianogas, _Dex thought as he clung for dear life to the ledge, for it was the only thing keeping him from plunging face first into the putrid sewer water. Even his thick Givin exoskeleton, which was resistant even to the vacuum of space, wasn't enough to repel the filth that resided in the sewers of Coruscant, though it somewhat helped with the smell.

Shit, piss and puke from countless creatures was bad enough, but this was the underworld, the sewer sludge down here undoubtedly contained many of the flesh eating parasites and organ rotting diseases that plagued many of the inhabitants. This place was certainly ground zero for any kind of bacterial life that thrived in the galaxy. That's why they didn't typically hire humans for this type of job, their weak stomachs typically scared off even the bravest of their kind. That, and there weren't so many humans unfortunate enough to be stuck on the lower levels of the Imperial City.

Dex was now in the home stretch of his shift. It brought him little relief, however, knowing that tomorrow the process would start all over again. It wasn't all bad though, there was no need for a bathroom break, considering where he was standing, every moment was a bathroom break. Two, not very many marauders were brave enough to attack workers in the sewers, knowing what was lurking in the sewage. Finally, it was one of the slightly better paying jobs in this section of Level 1256, but only because of those damn one-eyed beasts.

_Speaking of which... _

The oh-so-familiar groan pierced through the sound of flowing sewage. Very organic, alive, and terrifying, impossible to misidentify. It sounded hungry for live prey. Shimmying along the ledge and activating his headlamp, Dex was able to spot the creature's horrid red eye before it quickly darted under the liquid filth, out of view. This one was somewhat faster than the rest, and it always made Dex nervous, never knowing for sure whether this beast would be his final encounter.

A long brown tentacle shot out from the water and snaked its way around Dex's leg.

"Dude, no!" Dex screamed as he fired his blaster at the tentacle.

His company issue DL-44 was more than enough to take out even the most determined dianoga, at least so far. After two shots made their mark, the beast loosened its grip and shrieked in pain as it retreated back under the sludge.

"Great..." Dex grimaced out loud as he looked down at the disgusting fecal trail left on his leg.

Even if his job hadn't depended on exterminating these filthy beasts, there was no way he was going to let this one live, not after it dared to make physical contact with him. Thumbing the switch up on his DL-44, raising the output to its maximum, he scanned the area, ready for the kill.

"You are just too damn nasty to live. You're really gonna get it now, you freak bitch." Dex said as he got an idea.

In his bag, Dex typically carried with him several large bricks to use as distractions for the dianogas. He imagined it was quite difficult for them to see under the murky grime, that's why they would poke that big eye of theirs onto the surface. With his plan in hand, and a grin as wide as a Givin could manage, he tossed the brick into the water a few feet ahead. In an instant, the dianoga emerged almost completely, descending on the area the brick had splashed into. The cephalopod's horrible thrashing and gaping toothy maw, along with its monstrous screams, were enough to send shivers down Dex's spine, but it didn't stop him from repeatedly squeezing the trigger of his blaster, blowing apart the foolish dianoga. It cried out in agony as its body collapsed onto its back and floated downstream, dead.

"YEAH! Take the brown river rapids all the way to Hell, you bastard!" Dex shouted with a laugh. It was nice to be reminded that he was smarter than a mollusk.

Feeling cool, Dex attempted to spin his blaster pistol around his finger, but in the moment forgot he hadn't practiced the move in a while, nearly dropping the gun into the muck below. Catching it mid-air, he avoided giving himself a heart attack and continued through the sewer. By this point, after about a year of doing this routine, he didn't even need the map he'd been given. The maze-like layout of the sewer system was etched into his memory like a tattoo. That was the last of the four dianogas he'd been tasked with exterminating today, so he made his way to the closest exit to his job.

After a brief walk, the sounds of the hustle and bustle became more clear as the grating above came into view. It wouldn't exactly be fresh air up there, but far better than the swill that filled the air in these tunnels. His boots thudding on the metal floor of the tunnel echoed as he reached the ladder and began to climb up, only to find himself unable to go further as he looked down and saw a massive tentacle wrapped around his waist. Dex gasped in horror as he was pulled away from the ladder and into the slush below.

Managing to keep his torso and arms above water wasn't easy, but it wasn't just from the disgusting factor, it was also to ensure this dianoga wouldn't have the upper hand. Dex fumbled around frantically for his blaster, a struggle made even more difficult when more tentacles began to ensnare him. He could feel the beast's teeth begin to gnaw at his leg, thankfully not breaching the thick padding he'd been provided with. Still, not a pleasant feeling.

_Gnarly._

Wrestling with a dianoga was certainly not on Dex's to-do list for the day, and neither was becoming this thing's next meal. Finally grasping his blaster and pulling it from its holster, he stuck the barrel into the monster's mouth and fired several shots, taking the fight out of the beast and sending it into its death throes. Smacking the creature in its eye to loosen its grip on him, he channeled his primal instincts without even realizing it, and was able to put the beast down for good. Tearing the tentacles from his throat and waist, he suddenly remembered what he was standing in, his eye twitching with disgust as he slowly backed up towards the ledge. If this didn't make him an outstanding employee, he didn't know what would.

This dianoga hadn't been reported yet, but it was fully grown, which meant it either traveled from another part of the sewers or was just extremely elusive. His guess was the latter, considering how it managed to sneak up on him. Trying not to look at how dirty he was, he climbed the ancient, cold steel ladder and unlocked the grate above with his key.

Perhaps it was due to his near-death experience, but it felt great to be back on the surface, despite not being much better than the sewers. This was Farrel Street, it ran for about a mile or so and had steady foot traffic, with many businesses on both sides of the street. There wasn't much natural light this deep in Coruscant, several artificial lights from the upside down skyscrapers above provided minimal light, along with the neon signs of the businesses and small fires kept aflame by the slum dwellers.

These streets in the undercity of Coruscant were all Dex knew. He'd been here his whole life, never even seen his species' original planet, Yag'Dhul. Hell, he didn't even know what the surface of his own home planet looked like. It wasn't a lack of motivation, or nostalgia, it was because of what he was, an alien, an undesirable. The surface and upper levels of the city were confined strictly to humans, with very, very few exceptions, as to not contaminate the Empire's grand capital with diversity. The have-nots of this society were segregated to the dark underworld below the grand ecumenopolis, or 'world city', as Coruscant was a planet completely covered in one giant city. Dex often daydreamed about what the surface must look like, but knew the chances of actually seeing it for himself were quite slim. He'd gotten used to being an alien on his own home planet.

With his pants still soaked in sewage, Dex made his way down to the office, Capital City Extermination, a moderately successful chain that had locations all over the Imperial City, even a handful of spots on the surface. He'd tried dozens of times to be transferred to one of the company's surface locations, but Imperial red tape got in the way every time. He knew he would have to get used to being disappointed.

The plain neon sign illuminated the Aurebesh logo of Capital City Extermination, with two vagrants sitting in the adjacent alley, looking at Dex cautiously. One of them attempted to cover up a horrible cough, to no avail, wheezing and producing blood that dripped from their mouth. Dex pitied them, but there was nothing he could do for them, especially considering he was already covered with enough germs for one day. Unfortunately, this was a common sight here in the Underworld.

Entering the office and unhooking his blaster holster from his belt, he made his way to the front counter, which was manned by Elsie, one of the humans unlucky enough to be stuck on this level of Coruscant. Dex was unsure if she was to be considered beautiful by human standards, he knew nothing of such things, but she was pretty good at her job, responsible for dealing directly with clients and sending the exterminators to the places where the dianoga sightings occurred.

Elsie looked at Dex from head to toe, it probably wasn't just the sight that gave away what Dex had been through.

"Went for a swim, Dex?" she said as she tried to avoid breathing through her nose.

"Oh yeah, it's good for building the immune system." Dex said as he placed the company blaster on the desk, "I'd love to share that health advice with you, come here, let's share in the wealth." he said as he opened up his arms for a hug.

"You stay away from me with your nasty self!" Elsie said with a laugh, "You at least got them all, right?"

"Yeah, plus an extra one on the house. Don't say I don't ever do anything for you guys." Dex grimaced as he made his way into the employee break room.

Thankfully, it was the company issued pants and boots that were tarnished in the filth, not his own clothes. Nonetheless, he doubted it would take anything less than a thousand year shower to rid himself of all the germs that had made Dex their home. For once, he was actually glad to be an alien with a hardened, vacuum resistant exoskeleton. As he retrieved his personal clothes from his locker and changed out of the putrid company clothes, he could hear a commotion going on outside.

After hastening the changing process, he rushed out of the building and back into the streets. Now he could clearly hear what it was. A female Mon Calamari was screaming at the top of her lungs as intruders sprinted out of her residence and rushed through an alleyway, carrying large bags filled to the brim with something that made a metallic clinking sound. Almost as soon as the ruckus began, the hooligans were out of sight.

"Are you okay, ma'am?" Dex asked.

"Those hooligans crashed through my front door and ran right past me!" she called back, "I think they just robbed some place!"

"Hey you're lucky that's all they did!" Dex said as he headed down the street in the opposite direction.

In a lawless environment like this, staying alive was the most one could hope for. The Empire didn't bother enforcing any of its laws or offering any protection this deep into Coruscant. It was all but abandoned by the Imperial government, save for the individuals who were unfortunate enough to garner their attention. When the authorities did show their faces down here, they meant business. Unfortunately, the thieves were almost certainly going to get away with what they'd done.

As Dex traced the oh-so-familiar cracks in the worn path of Farrel Street on the way to his home, he could hear some more commotion. As he got closer to another alley, he looked down, the light from an open doorway illuminating a scene. Three Stormtroopers, all armored up head to toe in those iconic white suits of theirs, and an almost too well dressed Imperial Officer, detaining two aliens and one human. The three captives had their hands behind their backs, facing the wall, as one of the Stormtroopers breached a closed door and entered quickly, with one of the other troops behind him.

"GET DOWN ON THE GROUND!" one of the Stormtroopers screamed.

"DON'T REACH!" another Stormtrooper shouted.

"GET ON YOUR GODDAMN KNEES!" the first Stormtrooper shouted.

The officer and the third Stormtrooper, who remained outside to guard the prisoners, both stared blankly at Dex.

"Move along, ghoul." the officer said without breaking his soulless eye contact.

_Whatever..._

Dex continued walking, glad the Imps didn't arrest him on the spot for obstruction or some shit. He'd gotten used to the 'ghoul', 'freak' and 'ghost' insults by this point in his life.

Someone in one of the apartment complexes was playing some very nice easy listening music through an open window, it was the little things that one had to appreciate if they expected to make it down here. From a certain point of view, the upside down skyscrapers above were quite a sight, at least they were until you saw them every single day and had next to no chance of ever visiting them up close.

Finally, Dex arrived at his apartment. Well, that is if you can call an old cubicle in a derelict office building an apartment. The building had been abandoned sometime right after the Clone Wars, and was where Dex and his parents lived. It was nice because it was off the ground level, so it wasn't quite as dirty, and one could get at least a modicum of privacy. Though sometimes the other vagrants were known to be selfish, and would attempt to take the living spaces of others. Dex had fought for his space several times in the past, and for the most part, the memory of these fights kept the others from trying to take it from him again.

Entering the cold and dark office building, boots treading over the torn fabric of the old carpet, Dex walked past the collapsed staircase and over to the one that was still in working order. Every croak and groan in the staircase made him worry that today was going to be the day that it finally gave way, but that was not the case today. Stepping into the second floor office space, which was dimly lit by some fires contained in the shells of old droids, kept aflame by the loose firing mechanisms of broken blasters, Dex made his way past his alien neighbors and sat down in his cubicle, which was furnished only with three walls, quite a luxury suite.

Laying down on his back, Dex pulled his holopad out of his pocket and turned it on. It was the only kind of entertainment he had, and with no access to a library or any kind of electronic shops. There wasn't much on the device, and half the time he had to slap the damn thing around just to get it to work properly. To be honest, he was surprised it was still functional in the fifteen years he owned it. Had it been fifteen years? He didn't even know for sure how old he was, days and weeks just kind of blurred together.

He'd removed the back panel years ago, exposing the wiring and circuit board beneath. Although he hadn't received any formal education, his father had taught him what all Givin should know, computers. They'd practiced on anything they could find, and to Dex, this holopad was a smaller scale version of the broken, busted up ATM machines he and his dad has messed around with all those years ago. Soon, the device was up and running again.

The holopad had an old dejarik, or holochess, game built into it, with the option to have programmable opponents to increase replayability. Dex selected 'Dad', for his father had designed his own dejarik AI and put it into the game, using his own strategies and techniques, a personal touch so that even after death, he could still spend some quality time with his son. It always made Dex tear up a little bit, made him think back on his childhood, because although it was rough, at least he had someone to share it with.

That thought never really left him.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2 – Make Yourself Useful**

**Location: Coruscant, the Imperial City, Level 1256  
Time: 4 Years Before the Battle of Yavin**

He'd fallen asleep mid-game again. The dejarik game against his father's own programmed AI wasn't exactly going in his favor, but he didn't mind, that's how he remembered those games with his dad. When he awakened, the holopad was on the floor next to him, apparently the AI's Kintan Strider was in the perfect spot to take Dex's favorite piece, the Ghhhk. Oh well, it'll come time to lose again after work.

Dex left his home, the squatter's paradise, around the usual time and hit the streets towards his workplace. The thick humidity, a product of millions of sentient beings being crammed into an underground city and all expelling carbon dioxide, combined with trapped moisture formed artificial clouds near the bases of the upside down skyscrapers above, precipitating disgusting rain that pelted the inhabitants below. Dex hated this, rain was supposed to be nice and refreshing, this was just another awful reminder of the conditions of the underworld.

Thankfully, one of the few nice things about the sewers was that the storm drains functioned well enough that a worker could conduct his business down there and not have to worry about being trapped in by a flood.

Over the sound of pouring rain, Dex thought he could hear a scuffle in one of the abandoned buildings ahead. Farrel Street was littered with old places like this, shops that were forced to close due to either crime or lack of business, places that ended up boarding up their doors and windows and becoming host to graffiti, vagrants and other illegal activities. This store in particular had been a hot bed for the usage of heavy drugs for as long as Dex could remember.

Poking his head around the corner to get a decent look inside the dark shop, he could see two figures fighting over something. It was a life and death struggle, both seemed determined to end the other's existence as they fought over a rather sharp blade. One of the figures knocked the other onto his back and forced the blade into the man's chest, killing him in seconds. Dex backed up quickly in shock, not wanting to be seen or get involved.

He continued his walk to work. He wasn't sure if witnessing a brutal murder was a good enough excuse to not show up at work, but he decided he needed to do something to get his mind off of it. Plus, those dianogas aren't gonna kill themselves!

_Now that would be something, _Dex thought to himself. Unfortunately the damn things lacked the sentience required to host angst and depression. Too dumb to be sad. Dex practically waltzed into Capital City Extermination, happy to finally be in the company of someone he knew. Elsie, sitting in her usual spot behind the desk, glanced up from her holopad soap operas and squinted her eyes at Dex in confusion, seeming to sense something was different.

"What'd you do this time, Romo?" Elsie asked.

"Well **I **didn't do anything," Dex said, "I was just minding my own business and I happened to stumble across some dude getting shanked."

"Nice, what happened?" Elsie asked.

"I don't know, I didn't think to stop and ask the creepy dead-eyed killer what his beef was with the guy he killed." Dex said.

"Maybe you should have." Elsie replied, "Anyway, a bunch of businesses on Uwe Lane have been calling in this really nasty dianoga that's been reaching out of the grates and grabbing passerbys. It even dragged a Sullustan halfway in at one point."

"Freak of that size, desperate enough to grab big prey from the surface, I bet you its got mini sized freaks to feed," Dex reasoned, "I'll waste 'em all, no problem."

"Sweet," Elsie said as she handed Dex his company blaster, "Uwe Lane, Hole 15. Don't get yourself killed, hiring lately has been a bitch, not many up and coming exterminators these days."

"It's nice to feel important and appreciated sometimes." Dex said as he strapped his blaster and holster on and headed out.

After the brief ten minute walk to the appropriate sewer hole and beginning his day again, Dex activated his head lamp and made his way towards where he guessed the dianoga would be. This section of the sewer connected to a decently sized chamber with several different tunnels branching off in different directions. This was a great spot for a large beast to set up its eggs and young, while also providing multiple paths in which to search for food.

_If I were a nasty ass dianoga, this is where I'd be, _Dex thought.

Dex prepared the old brick trick again, digging into his bag for one of the distractions, but heard the unmistakable groan of a very large dianoga coming from one of the tunnels to the right. Happy that for once they were making his job a little easier, Dex hastily made his way along the narrow walkway around the perimeter of this chamber and stepped into the waste covered tunnel, blaster ready.

"Where are ya, big fella?" Dex asked. He hoped that the creature's size and hunting methods didn't also mean it could respond.

Then he saw it. A massive eye stalk poked out of the putrid brown sludge, looking right at Dex, sizing up its prey without blinking. Dex never got used to it, and cringed a little, knowing full well what this thing was thinking. However, the hesitation didn't last long as he fired away, one shot hitting the shaft of its eye stalk, the other two hitting the surface of the sludge where its body was. The dianoga let out a painful shriek, then sped off in the other direction, further down into the tunnel.

"Where are you going?!" Dex said with a laugh as he gave chase, "At least let me put you out of your misery first!"

Sprinting through the tunnel as fast as he could manage, kicking up sewer waste water in the air behind him, he had his sights set on the dianoga, which was slightly faster as it sped through the muck ahead. As daylight came into view through one of the storm drains, Dex froze as he heard a scuffle taking place just outside on the street. Forgetting about the injured dianoga for a moment, he leaned up against the tunnel wall and listened.

It was distinctly three different people, two attackers and a victim. He didn't dare take a look out of the storm drain, for fear of being seen, but his keen hearing was all he needed. It sounded like the two attackers were both human, speaking Galactic Basic but in foreign accents. In all likelihood, they weren't from Level 1256, or even Coruscant. The victim was definitely a female, and sounded like a near-human, or something along those lines, but probably wasn't a true human. She sounded like a resident of these parts.

"She's making a lot of noise, are you sure it's not going to be an issue?" one of the attackers asked.

"Down here, not at all..." the other one said, "We've got all the time in the world."

"Please let me go!" the victim said, "I won't tell anyone!"

"You've seen our faces, little lady." the second attacker said.

"Please!" the victim begged.

It didn't take a genius or any kind of formal education to know what was about to go down. For the first time in a long time, Dex found himself unsure what to do. Trying to do the right thing down here typically got you killed, but he knew what his dad would have wanted him to do. Be the hero. Maybe things down in the undercity got that way because of its residents' complacency, accepting things for what they were and trying to distance themselves from the horrors. Today was the dianoga's lucky day, as Dex decided the damn thing wasn't worth it. Blaster in hand, the Givin sprinted to the nearest manhole cover, knowing full well what he had to do.

Unlocking the cover as fast as he could and practically dashing out onto the street, he then made his way stealthily over to the alley where the two attackers dragged their victim. Carefully peering from the corner, he confirmed that the two attackers were both male humans, dressed in clean outfits typical of the civilians one could expect see on the surface. The victim was a young female Togruta, with rain soaked raggedy clothes that were being violently torn off by the attackers.

"AGH! SHIT! She scratched me!" one of the perps shouted.

"Quit your whining, it's not that bad, grow a goddamn pair." the other one said.

"When we're finished, I wanna be the one to shoot that bitch." the first perp said.

"Sure, whatever, as long as I get her first." the second one said as he pinned the girl to the ground and began to undo his belt.

That was more than enough for Dex. He'd been in plenty of scuffles and confrontations, but had never actually killed anyone before, and found his hand shaking as he pointed it at the back of the perp who was preparing to have his way with the girl. It didn't take long to find the courage to shoot, the shot making its ear piercing shrieking sound, barely making its mark, striking the man in the back and bringing him down in a heap, dead. The other man quickly stood up in terror, hands in the air.

Dex had a mix of emotions running through his head. Fear, knowing he was now a murderer, like many of the other underworld inhabitants. Anger, focused towards these two for trying to have their way with an innocent person and for making him into a killer. Shock, from what he'd just done. Pride, feeling that in a strange way, he was cleaning up the streets and making his late father proud.

There was something about this other human though. For a second or two, Dex examined the scumbag from head to toe. Very familiar. Forgetting about the obviously out of place clean clothes, he focused on the man's face, which had a deep gash from the struggle with their victim. Cold, soulless eyes on a terrified face. That, combined with the man's accent, didn't take him long to put it together.

"Woah, hey, don't shoot! I've got money, you can have it all!" the man said in a shaky voice as he dropped to his knees.

"I remember you..." Dex said, still aiming his DL-44 at the man, "You're that little rat Imperial that was in that raid the other day, aren't you? Kicking down doors wasn't enough, now you gotta come here and rape us too? Why don't you get your rocks off the way the rest of us do, huh? I'm sure you can afford a decent holopad, or shit, just use your imagination."

"That's good advice, I can take it! Just let me go, I'll forget about all of this! I can get you a pass to the surface!" the man said.

"I got a pass for ya, a one way ticket to your goddamn grave." Dex replied.

The out of uniform officer had only a fraction of a second to scream before Dex put a blaster bolt in between the man's eyes, ending his pathetic life. Down here, the killing of two rapists wasn't at all abnormal, even if they were from the surface, but two rapists who happened to be Imperial officers? Dex realized he could be in some serious trouble. As he holstered his pistol and paced around nervously, hands up on his temples as he thought up a plan, the girl began retrieving her clothes.

"Thank you." she said.

"Thank me after we get out of this." Dex said, "Those were Imperial officers. Eventually their friends are gonna come down here looking for them, and it won't take them long to figure out it was foul play."

"So what are you going to do?" the Togruta asked.

"You're in this too, girl." Dex replied, "Get your clothes back on, you're gonna need 'em if you're gonna help me carry these guys away."

The girl looked at the two dead bodies uncomfortably. Dex wasn't sure if it was because of what they had done to her, or if it was the thought of touching corpses and illegally disposing of them. Though he knew time was of the essence here, the Imps weren't likely to let this one slide. Was this girl more trouble than she was worth? Maybe this was why more people didn't step up to do the right thing.

"Now unless you wanna end up in a jail cell, or worse, you pick up that dead guy." Dex reaffirmed as he grabbed one of the dead officers by his hair and began dragging him.

Nodding her head without a word, the girl obeyed and grabbed the other corpse by the arms and dragged it along the cold, wet ground. She struggled, it was a heavy man after all, but they didn't have to go very far. In the heat of the moment, Dex hadn't had time to think about what his plan was, but it was clearer than ever now. All those years of sitting back and allowing evil to prey on the weak, and it felt good to finally do something about it. At least the dianogas were just dumb animals, these scumbags made their choices.

Unlocking the sewer grate with his key, Dex heaved the large metal manhole cover off of the ground and out of the way. Luckily, there didn't appear to be any looky-loos around, hell, even if there were, the odds of any of them actually reporting to the Imperials weren't worth worrying about. Pushing the first body, rolling it on its side, then maneuvering it so that it would go into the sewer headfirst, Dex forced the corpse through the manhole. First landing on the hard stone ledge with a bone shattering crack on the head, splattering blood all over it, it tumbled down into the muck below. Only a second or two later, the massive dianoga from before screeched and unleashed a flurry of tentacles and teeth on the body, dragging it under the waste water and out of sight.

"That's probably the scariest thing I think I've ever seen." Dex said, "One more to go."

Grabbing the other dead body by its hair and repeating the same process, he couldn't help but smirk at the irony that instead of killing the dianogas today, he was now feeding them. Not how today was supposed to go, at all. Dex rolled the second corpse over onto its side, making it drop down into the sewer, this time its legs hitting the stone ledge and dropping face-first into the sludge with a loud splash, meeting a similar fate as the other corpse as numerous smaller dianogas descended on the body.

"I was working in the sewer when I heard you screaming." Dex said.

"That blaster... you're not just some maintenance worker, are you?" the Togruta asked.

"Exterminator. Now I guess I'm doing the damn things a favor today..." Dex replied, "It doesn't take the dianogas very long to consume a body, especially if they have offspring like that one does. I doubt the Imperials will actually find the bodies."

"I'd heard that some Imperials were coming down to the lower levels to do things they couldn't get away with on the surface..." the girl said, "I heard some were even paying thugs to rob and kill enemies of the state on their behalf, I guess it was quicker than going through the actual legal process."

"I didn't realize how deep the corruption was with the Empire." Dex admitted, "We need to get you some place safe."

"Well," the woman began to say, "I can just go back to my shack-"

"No way!" Dex interrupted, "those men might have had you in their sights before today. If they had you profiled, the ones who come looking for you will probably look there first. Now that I think about it, that officer might have had something on me from when I saw him the other day. My place won't work either then."

Perhaps if he were only a mere human, Dex would assume his actions here would be inconsequential in the grand scheme of things, covered by a level of anonymity shared by all in the underworld. It would be easy to assume so, but his restless Givin mind always had to assume the worst case scenario was the only scenario, he found it hard to ever be disappointed that way. Maybe that was why humans didn't last long down here. It's certainly why the two late Imperial officers didn't last, they didn't figure that sooner or later, someone would be fed up with their shit and put an end to their wickedness.

"If you need some place to hole up for a little while, I think I know the place." Dex said as he took the girl's hand and began walking.

"It's not some disease ridden slum is it?" the girl asked.

"Disease ridden?" Dex said, "Nah, nothing worse than Bledsoe's disease. Slum? Absolutely, but it's gonna be your best bet for the next few days. Another thing, I don't want to know your name, and I don't want you to know mine."

"Why?" she asked innocently.

Dex frowned at the young Togruta. He was disappointed that this girl wasn't a criminal mastermind like him.

"If one of us gets captured, the Imperials could get that information out of us, one way or another, but only if we actually had it." Dex reasoned, "Here, take this, you need it more than I do."

Being the gentlegivin he was, Dex removed his jacket and handed it over to the girl, who found it to be quite a few sizes larger than she was, but if anything, it made it better suited at keeping the outside out. Honestly, with his species' vacuum resistant exoskeleton, having a jacket on was kind of overkill, it was more so just for the looks anyway.

After walking for about twenty minutes, the pair arrived at a part of Level 1256 that was quite a bit darker, visually and literally. O'Malley's Alley was host to numerous cantinas and brothels, host to the seedier characters of the underworld, folks only stumbled into this part of the city if they meant to, either to hide or start trouble. From what Dex had heard, those who committed serious crimes on the surface used O'Malley's Alley as a conduit for their escape, a terminal to the train of the underworld if you will.

"It's not exactly paradise," Dex said, "but it'll keep you alive, at least for a few days."

"How do you know of this place?" the girl asked.

"Because I've lived near it long enough to know to stay away from it unless you have no other choice," Dex said, "lot of really hardcore criminals holed up in these parts. The Empire doesn't come knocking around here, I mean unless you're a Jedi or something. This is the one place I can think of where they're not going to come looking, they don't wanna stir the undercity's pot if you catch what I mean."

Keeping their heads low as they passed through the street, in the shadows of the looming buildings and shady bars, the two found themselves going down a slanted cobblestone street, one that had a steady stream flowing on the side from all the rain. Avoiding the partially flooded spots, the duo entered one of the many abandoned wooden shacks. It was small, probably only big enough for two, maybe three people to stand inside and still have barely enough room to maneuver. The dingy, splintered door had no lock, but it would suffice.

"Alright kid, I'm gonna go back to work and tell my boss what happened. Not sure what kind of response I'll get, but it's probably worth mentioning." Dex said.

"You're just gonna leave me here?" the Togruta asked.

"Yep!" Dex replied, "You should be fine. If I'm not back in an hour... well... shit I really don't know what to tell you. See you in a few!"

Dex thought the girl was starting to say something, but was unable to hear her over the sound of him slamming the fragile wooden door behind him as he walked out. He was convinced she would be fine, tucked away mostly out of sight amongst many similar looking shacks. Sure, she's had a pretty rough day, and to some, leaving her in a wooden shack alone for a while after what she'd been through seemed cruel, but he'd be back. At least that's how he rationalized it.

In the home stretch of the twenty-or-so minute walk back to his job, Dex noticed something alarming in the distance. Smoke, and just barely visible underneath it was fire. Fires weren't exactly a rare sight in the Underworld, but this one was massive. The closer Dex got to the fire, the more likely the possibility, he figured, that it could be affecting his workplace. Sure enough, once he was within fifty feet or so of the flames, he could see that not only had they affected his job, but judging by the amount of fire on the other buildings, it appeared that the blaze **originated **in his workplace.

Capital City Extermination was no more. His heart was pounding so hard that he could hear it. Peering through the window and focusing as much as he possibly could, he could see clear as day the corpse of a young human female on the ground in front of the desk, with blaster marks on her chest. Dropping his jaw in shock and stepping back, he knew this had to be related to the deaths of the Imperial officers.

How had they found his identity though? Did they actually profile him from the other day? Did they pry any information from Elsie before they killed her? How close were they to catching him? None of it made any sense, it all seemed so fast. Assuming his math was correct, which it usually was, Dex believed roughly an hour or so had passed since the killing of the two officers.

Through the panic that strained his mind, he managed to see a white blob in his peripheral vision, coming from around a corner. Realizing what it was, Dex turned his head and ducked just in time to avoid the blaster fire from a squad of Stormtroopers just down the road. They were waiting for him! The bastards torched the business, killed an innocent woman, then waited around for him all as a trap!

Leaving Farrel Street behind and sprinting down the alleyways with all his power, he knew that the flight option in fight-or-flight was the best, considering he had no idea how many soldiers were waiting for him. Using his species' superb navigational skills, Dex practically flew down the side roads, taking seemingly random twists and turns in an effort to throw off his ruthless pursuers. He was really trying to prove this time that Givin minds were inherently more complex than those of a human, he **needed **it to be true.

He spotted his cover, a dumpster behind one of the countless businesses in the area. This would have to do. He ducked behind it, slightly shoving it aside to make room between it and the wall for him to partially squeeze behind. The moment he settled into his hiding spot, a squad of about five or six Stormtroopers sprinted right by him and split off in different directions down the alleys.

"He may be headed towards 2nd Squad's location." one of the soldiers calmly said over his radio.

"Copy that, we're deploying Massiffs now." said someone over the radio.

"Set biometric scanners on every possible escape route. Detain any Givin that enters those sectors." said a Stormtrooper in a not too distant alley.

"Sentry droids aren't reporting any activity along any projected vectors." said another soldier over the radio.

That was probably the best Dex could have hoped for. Laying his head back against the dumpster and sighing in relief, he nearly jumped out of his exoskeleton when he saw the face of a creepy Gotal peering out from inside the dumpster. Dex leapt up to his feet and stared at the filthy, grinning Gotal.

"Nice job. Not easy to get away from Imperials." the Gotal said.

"Thanks?" Dex said as he walked off.

The Gotal was right, he'd successfully eluded them, not an easy feat. Not wanting to push his luck, he headed off back in the other direction, and within thirty or so minutes, returned to O'Malley's Alley. Exhausted and somewhat demoralized, he quietly entered the shack and found the Togruta girl sitting in the corner, arms crossed.

"Took you long enough." she said.

"Ran into some of our Imperial friends." Dex explained, "They definitely know what we did, and I don't think they plan on capturing us alive."

"Those officers must have been important up on the surface. The Empire isn't as dumb as we thought." the girl said.

"If they put half as much effort into helping people as they did tracking us down, there wouldn't be much of an underworld." Dex replied, "You can't stay here forever, and you can't go back to your home."

"Where else can I go?" the Togruta asked.

"The surface." Dex said as he got an idea, his eyes lighting up with excitement.

"That's impossible! Only humans get up there, besides, we'd have to go through the Empire to get there, isn't that the opposite of what we want?" the girl reasoned.

"On the contrary," Dex replied, "I think it's exactly what we need."


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3 – Living Contraband**

**Location: Coruscant, the Imperial City, Level 1256  
Time: 4 Years Before the Battle of Yavin**

Dex hated this. The air in this room was beyond musky, he could practically see the filth floating around above his head. The glaring red light in the corner of the ceiling was just bright enough to be able to make out where one was, but not much else, often leading to stubbed toes and overturned furniture. It was Dex's brilliant idea to take refuge in an unoccupied room in one of the brothels in O'Malley's Alley, using the Togruta girl and her presence as an excuse to continue residing in the room. There'd been more than a handful of... interested potential clients, none of their advances were accepted, after all, they weren't here to make money. They had to stay on the move until he was ready.

Two whole days had passed since Dex decided to get involved and kill two off duty Imperial officers. His intervention cost him a great deal, not only did he lose his job, but he found himself wracked with guilt over the death of his employer, Elsie. In frustration, Dex kicked over a small wooden nightstand, unsure if stopping the rape was even worth all the trouble. He'd never felt conflict like this before, life before was always really simple.

Sliding the metal slab of a door aside, the Togruta girl entered the room and noticed the overturned wooden nightstand, then looked at Dex, who was sitting on the horribly stained bed.

"I would pick it back up, but I'm afraid to touch it." she said.

"Can't blame ya." Dex replied.

"We'll be gone soon anyway." the girl said with a smile.

"You got a group together?" Dex asked with a glimmer of hope in his sunken eyes.

"Yep, a Baragwin that lives a couple rooms over from the Aleena family you found." the Togruta answered.

"A Baragwin? Did you have to choose a big, awkwardly shaped alien?" Dex asked.

"Hey you said we needed a sixth person for this!" she replied defensively.

"Yeah but we've actually got to get the damn guy past the Imperials." Dex reasoned.

"I don't want to be the one to tell him we changed our minds!" the Togruta said.

Dex sighed, then thought for a few moments. It was time to put that brilliant Givin mind to use, throw that bitch in overdrive. It wouldn't be easy to sneak a Baragwin past the soldiers, but it was doable. Besides, it wasn't like the Baragwin could help that his species was shaped the way they were, and it didn't give him any less of a right to freedom than anyone else.

"No it's alright, we can make it work. It's pushing it, but it's possible. Screw it, we're ready." Dex said as he stood up.

"Right now?" the girl asked.

"Absolutely, I'm ready to get the hell away from this dump." the Givin replied as he secured his DL-44 to his hip and pushed the door out of his way.

Being careful not to make eye contact with any of the women or their clients as he made his way down the narrow hallway, Dex held onto the Togruta girl's hand as he led the way. The lighting in the hallway wasn't much better, and he assumed the heavy coloration on the lights was to mask the appearance of bodily fluids on the walls and floors. A Twi'lek girl, a somewhat attractive one, poked out from her room and lightly pulled on Dex, who gently pulled himself away politely and continued down the hall. Only a few steps later, a Gran reached out and put his arm in the Togruta girl's way.

"How much, girly?" the Gran asked in a slurred voice.

"She's not for sale." Dex said, looking back at the alien.

"Who are you, her pimp?" the Gran replied.

"Someone you don't want to get involved with," Dex said as he patted his hand on his blaster, "You can move out the girl's way now."

"Oh, hey sorry man..." the Gran said as he moved his arm out of the way and slumped back into the room he came from.

"Double standard much?" the Togruta noticed.

"Huh?" Dex said.

"You didn't threaten the Twi'lek!" the girl answered.

"She wasn't as insistent as that guy back there." Dex said as the two finally stepped out of the decrepit brothel.

The only realistic long term solution to this problem Dex and the girl found themselves in, an escape to the surface was quite obviously the best choice. Dangerous, but so was staying on Level 1256, the ultimate microcosm of primal brutality. Interlevel travel on Coruscant was heavily regulated by the Empire, hundreds of Stormtroopers guarded each docking bay, all with orders to shoot on sight. Dex wasn't so sure it was even possible, but if it was, he wanted to be sure that more than just two people got out, make all the trouble truly worth it.

Dex and the Togruta girl reached the wooden shack they had briefly taken as a refuge, now being used as a temporary safehouse for the other escapees. Knocking the secret code on the door to reassure the future fugitives, Dex opened the first shack's door, revealing an Aleena family of three. The tiny, blue reptilian bipeds, all with their signature crested heads and innocent looking eyes, looking up at their savior.

Like with the Togruta girl, Dex didn't want to know any of their names, for fear of being captured and having leverage the Imperials could use. The mother clutched her two young boys close, and a smile formed on her long, toothy mouth.

"Is it time yet?" the mother asked in a broken accent. Hey, she was trying.

"It is." Dex said, "Ready to see the surface, kids?" he said as he knelt down to their level.

The two eager kids nodded in response, fueling Dex's desire to make the plan work. It wasn't just the lives of strangers he was in charge of, kids too. He stood back up and nodded at the Togruta girl as they walked over to the next shack, situated several feet away. Knocking again in the familiar pattern, he opened the shack door, revealing a lone Phuii, a lanky, saurin-esque alien with wrinkly green skin and bright yellow eyes, a species typically known for their seemingly permanent scowls, but this one lit up at the sight of its heroes.

"Let's get you out of here." the Togruta girl said as she beckoned for the Phuii to follow.

"I can't wait to feel sunlight for the first time!" the Phuii said as he stepped out of the shack.

"Soon, bud." Dex said, "Where's this Baragwin you found?"

"He's in the alleyway over this way." she said as she led the way down the road.

After a brief walk down the cold, almost abandoned street near O'Malley's Alley, the group turned down an open space between two derelict stores, littered with debris and filth that likely accumulated over the course of a few years. Laying down underneath a bed of cardboard, a depressed looking Baragwin looked up at his new companions. Dex could almost see the musk stemming from it as it stood up. Its skin was a dark olive complexion, tongue hanging out slightly from the left side of its mouth, hunched over with tattered rags covering its massive body.

"You have gathered, it must be time." the Baragwin stated in a voice that seemed to carry with it wisdom beyond any of their own lifetimes.

"That's right!" the Togruta said, "This is the guy who's gonna help get us past the Imperials. He still hasn't told me his name."

"We're going to be getting **that **past the Imperials..." Dex said to himself, "I must be out of my goddamn mind."

"You do have a plan for him, right?" the girl asked.

"Yeah, I do." Dex said, determined not to screw this up for everybody, "I'll show you."

Several minutes later, on the rooftop of an old junk shop, Dex looked down at the main tool of his plan and grinned, proud of his work. The outer shell of a Gonk droid, with all the insides pried out, leaving it hollow with only the legs left attached. It appeared to be an older model, probably forty or fifty years old, and had been out of commission in the back room of the junk shop for quite some time, so he didn't feel too bad about stealing it and... converting it to another use. With no visible blemishes or blaster marks on the exterior, it would appear to be a fairly ordinary droid to the casual observer.

"I don't think I have to say what happens next." Dex said as he looked back at the others, a look of pride on his skeletal face.

"You want us all to pile in **there**?" the Togruta asked.

"You want to get out of here, right? Make it work!" Dex said, "Just you five though." he said as he looked at the girl, the Aleena family, and the Phuii, "Now about you, big guy." he said as he stood up and walked over to the ledge on the roof.

The roof of this old junk shop overlooked a loading dock where ships would land and drop off cargo for the various businesses in the area, it was constantly full of traffic from vehicles, sentients, and droids, the perfect camouflage. Shuffling around the loading dock were a number of binary loader droids, most carrying cargo palettes in tow, the simple machines were yellow in color with two massive hooves and two forklift-like arms, and had very basic programming, making them perfect for this type of job.

"Someone of your, uh, vertical integrity, is gonna require some more drastic cover..." Dex said as he pointed at the loader droids, "We hide you among the cargo on the palette, then program the droid to head into the Imperial sector, right past the Stormtroopers."

"Won't they think it's weird that the droid is continuing on its way during a firefight?" the Baragwin asked.

"These binary loaders aren't sophisticated enough to care, just like Gonk droids, they're programmed to carry on their task regardless of what's going on around them..." Dex explained, "And the Imps know that too. Even if they did notice, they'll be too focused on me to worry about some dumb droids."

"It's a good plan, I think this just might work." the Baragwin said, "Thank you."

"We're not out of this yet, guys." Dex said as he patted the alien on its shoulder and started to head off the roof, "Let's get to work."

Dex figured it would only have been a matter of time before he did something like this. His anger towards the Empire for its segregation of the lower levels and hostile attitude towards its inhabitants was like a powder keg, waiting for something to set it off. He knew these streets better than they did, he had the true home field advantage, ironic considering it was indeed the Imperial City after all. He didn't feel like a hero, even if these people saw him as one. To him, he was just another alien who was fed up with being treated like a second class citizen on his own home planet.

Once they were down by the loading docks, with the Gonk droid disguise and the loader droid programmed for its new destination, Dex drew his blaster and peeked around the corner, about a dozen or so Stormtroopers were guarding some shipping containers about a hundred feet or so away.

"Alright, get in your positions." Dex said.

"Hey, you told me to thank you after we got out of this." the Togruta said.

"Oh yeah, I guess I did say that." Dex admitted.

"So... thank you." she said.

"It was fun, girl, maybe we'll run into each other again some time." he said with a smile, "Hopefully it'll be after you get off this rock. Those credits I gave to you guys, spend them wisely, alright?"

"Right. So long, Ghost." the girl said as she got into the disguise with the others.

Ghost... it had a nice ring to it. He wasn't sure if the namesake was due to his ability to hide from the Imperials, or if it was because of his appearance. Either way, he kind of liked it, it was a lot more endearing than all of the other nicknames he'd been given. In a way, it gave him more confidence to get the job done, slip in and out of the spotlight, just like the plan called for.

The girl, the three tiny Aleenas, and the Phuii all crammed into the Gonk droid's shell. Dex knew it was possible, but it still impressed the hell out of him. With the Togruta girl using the legs and the others keeping the shell stable, it was quite a convincing facade at first glance. At the same time, the Baragwin climbed into the assorted junk pile on the cargo palette of the loader droid.

With that, Dex snuck around the corner and dove behind a pile of cargo containers. He needed to get as far away from the escapees as possible before being spotted, it would maximize the chances of getting them away undetected. The troopers were all silent, nothing seemed to be going on, which definitely helped the surprise factor. Snaking in between various crates to get closer to the troops and to the other side of this industrial area was the ultimate test of his agility, he impressed himself, remembering to keep heel to toe in order to lessen the sound of his footsteps.

The stormtroopers were now only twenty or so feet away. This was close enough. Dex's heart was pounding in his chest, this was it, this cemented his relationship with the Empire. He didn't hesitate, though, as he stood up and fired a shot into the three Stormtroopers closest to him, then dove back into cover as the other soldiers responded with their own blaster fire. He was hoping these troops would be less combat ready, considering they were basically just guard dogs at this point, but resistance was resistance.

Adrenaline fueled Dex's every motion, rolling between the various crates and walls as cover and firing off as many rounds as he could safely manage. His accuracy left a little to be desired, but hey, it was his first firefight. The Stormtroopers didn't falter, which is exactly what Dex had hoped for, hell, it'd cause problems if they tried to retreat. As the two sides traded blaster fire, Dex glanced over to see the escapees, all in their disguises, slowly and casually making their way through the Imperial's positions. As he'd hoped, the troops paid absolutely no mind to the otherwise normal looking Gonk droid and binary load droid as they went about their business, slowly slinking around through a combat zone.

Still, Dex knew the Imps were bound to be suspicious, he had to at least make it **look **like he was trying to break through their ranks.

"Stand down, asshole!" one of the Stormtroopers cursed out.

"Get out of my way, then!" Dex called back, "I want off this goddamn rock!"

"We're gonna burn your disease carrying hide so it doesn't pollute the surface." another Stormtrooper said as he fired off some more rounds in Dex's direction.

Dex's keen sense of hearing just barely caught the sound of something clicking against the wet ground. Looking around for a potential flanking enemy, he was instead greeted by the sight of an armed and blinking thermal detonator. Screaming like a girl, Dex dove for the grenade and tossed it back towards the Stormtroopers, just in time too as it detonated mid-air, a deafening blast of a brilliant orange hue followed by the clattering of pavement from the ground raining down from above. Dex wasn't sure if any of the troops had been killed in the blast, it was unlikely, but at the very least he hoped they were disoriented.

In one swift motion, Dex rolled sideways and slightly forward, towards the nearest available cover, while also taking a fast potshot at the troops, missing just slightly over on of their shoulders.

_Damn, almost... _Dex thought as he landed in cover. At least he nailed that part. He noticed that many more Stormtroopers were on their way, guns ready.

"Thought you dumb aliens liked playing fetch!" one of the troopers called out.

"Don't you guys ever get tired of being bigots?" Dex replied.

"What?" the soldier called back.

_Exactly, _Dex thought as he popped out of cover and shot the soldier right in the face, splitting his helmet open and sending him crashing onto the ground.

Though he only had a fraction of a second to see before ducking back into cover, Dex noticed the escapees had made it past the Imperial checkpoint. He'd done his part, now it would be up to them. Once out of eyesight of the troopers, they'd be free to make their way to the first available ship, as everyone will assume they made their way through legally. The credits Dex was able to spare for them ought to come in handy for the escapees, and with that thought in his head, he decided it had all been worth it, at least up to this point.

Plotting out the best possible escape route from his location didn't take long, the mental gymnastics worked surprisingly well under the pressure of a firefight. As he considered all possibilities, he caught the briefest sight of what appeared to be a bright glint from one of the rooftops. Pure instinct kicked in as Dex dove to the side, a sniper shot scraping his shoulder. The searing pain sent Dex into a cursing frenzy, nearly causing him to hurl in the process, but it did little to soothe the ever growing burning that was consuming the skin on his bony shoulder.

"Subject is wounded," a Scout Trooper reported from the rooftop high above, "Move up along Grid 03 and cut him off there."

Eavesdropping on their radio chatter was practically useless, Dex didn't really have the chance to familiarize himself with their jargon or terminology, but it didn't take a genius to figure out that they were going to take full advantage of the marksman's successful hit. Thankfully, Dex's DL-44 only required the use of what was currently his good arm. Several shots in rapid succession kept the advancing Stormtroopers at bay long enough to provide him a chance to make a break for the nearest alleyway.

Laying down suppressing fire on the Scout Trooper above seemed to work, giving Dex the window of opportunity he needed to make an escape of his own, falling back to the nearest alley that would eventually connect him with the streets he was so familiar with. Sprinting as fast as his thin legs would allow him, he turned his head only for the briefest of moments to taunt his white-armor clad opponents.

"Long live the Rebel Alliance!" Dex shouted.

It wouldn't hurt to pin this diversional attack on the galaxy's most notorious band of militiamen. To Dex, they were little more than wide-eyed dreamers. After all, picturing a galaxy without the Empire seemed impossible, and besides, were these rebels, these warriors and pirates, even capable of running a galaxy after they won? He didn't know, or care, it all seemed to far away, that it was a fight in a bigger picture than he was in.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4 – Career Day**

**Location: Coruscant, the Imperial City, Level 1256  
Time: 4 Years Before the Battle of Yavin, 1 Month After the Attack on the Imperial Checkpoint**

It got easier. Assuring the successful exodus of the undercity's denizens, that is, sheltering them to safety by engaging the Imperials in daring raids. He had it down to a science now, and he was surprised the Imps hadn't caught on to the true reason behind his attacks. To them, it was a lone Givin randomly attacking their checkpoints on Level 1256, with alleged ties to the Rebel Alliance, and that was the way Dex liked it. Since helping his Togruta friend reach safety on the surface, Dex had repeated the same rescue missions for other aliens and succeeded five times. It was, as he decided, his calling, his reason for existing in this galaxy.

However, it couldn't be gun battles and vigilantism all the time, not even he had the energy for that. Today was Dex's off day, and he knew just what to do with it. He'd sold some military grade tech from some of the stormtroopers he'd blasted, and had a decent stack of credits to his name. Most of it he would donate to the more unfortunate denizens of these parts, but he felt he had earned some well deserved R&R, and was headed to one of the many bar districts on Level 1256.

As Dex approached the district, which was situated on a massive steel balcony three stories above the street, the smell of stale swill filled his nostrils. The undercity got the worst of a lot of the things the galaxy had to offer, and alcohol was no different, only the nastiest drinks made their way this deep into the planet's crust, and for the record, Dex was fine with it. His species was practically built to handle the extremities, exposure to the vacuum of space among other things. His tolerance to alcohol and its bitter, sometimes toxic qualities, meant his standards weren't as high as a human's.

After climbing the creaky, dingy metal stairs to the bar district, Dex made his way to the closest cantina, The Watering Hole, its name obnoxiously bright on the neon sign above the door. Someone had not so cleverly written "Hell" in front of "Hole" on the sign, an anonymous, thankless comedian no doubt. Before he entered, however, Dex couldn't help but notice something. Some of the patrons were outside, conversing with one another, all with drinks in hand. In fact, everyone on this floor either had a drink, or were on their way to or from an establishment, everyone except one. A Devaronian stood alone, leaning up against the metal railing that overlooked the street below. This red skinned being, with horns resembling a devil, was looking intently at Dex, only to look away when Dex noticed.

It may have been Dex's off day, but he was never truly able to let his guard down, especially when he noticed the piece in the Devaronian's jacket, a small holdout blaster pistol, very illegal. Dex pretended he didn't notice the lone gunman and entered The Watering Hole. A thick cloud of hookah smoke blasted him in the face as he entered the small establishment, which was almost completely jam packed with aliens from a dozen different worlds. He made his way to the main bar area, politely squeezing past the many beings who filled the bar floor area.

"Whatcha havin'?" the Duros bartender asked.

"Surprise me." Dex said as he laid the appropriate amount of credits down.

As the bartender got to work on his own choice of booze, Dex took a look around the bar to see if there were any other shady characters. Well, perhaps that wasn't the proper term, considering this place was full of the unsavory type. He was on the lookout for any potential threats, like the guy out front, guys with staring problems and pistols bigger than their brains. He didn't see any, and that was the way he liked it.

"Umbaran Shadow Whiskey." the Duros said as he placed a cup of a dark liquid in front of Dex.

"Good choice, thanks mate." Dex said as he downed the drink in one quick motion, the bartender's eyes widening in surprise,"What's the matter? You look like you've seen a ghost." Dex said with a grin.

With that, the shocked Duros moved on to the next customer, leaving the satisfied Givin alone to continue enjoying his day off. As the liquor traveled down his throat, he could feel himself beginning to become one with the seediness of his surroundings, even if this type of blending in only took place in his head, it couldn't hurt. Well, maybe a little.

Before Dex could ask for a second round, he couldn't help but notice three more patrons all enter at the same time, three tall humans who weren't subtle in the slightest as they looked all around the bar and focused their attention on Dex. Like the Devaronian outside, they quickly looked away once he noticed, but now they outnumbered him, they didn't have to play it safe anymore. What could they possibly want with him? They weren't dressed like the typical slum dwellers, even the humans who resided here looked like vagrants, not like these guys. Rather, they looked like people who were trying too hard to look homeless without actually being homeless. They were still groomed, their faces clear of any dirt and debris. Outsiders, and they were interested in Dex.

The three of them split up, one sat at the bar perpendicular to Dex, one stood by the entrance, and the third took a seat at an empty table a few feet behind Dex. Covering as much ground as possible, smart, the best way to set up an ambush or prevent one's escape. He had to assume these goons were armed and that they probably weren't against the idea of collateral damage, of which there'd be a lot of if a firefight was to erupt in the middle of a busy bar.

Dex sat for a few moments, waiting for one of the men to make the first move, but none of them did anything other than try to disguise the fact that they were watching him very closely. He knew if he was quick, he could take out one of them before the others could react, but he wasn't confident he could take out the others so quickly. Besides, just because they were keeping an eye on him didn't mean they deserved dirt naps, not yet at least.

Dex turned and looked at the goon situated at the table behind him. This one, a young human with short blond hair and green eyes, focused his gaze on a stain on the table, trying to pick away at it in a pathetic attempt to fool Dex of the man's true intentions.

"You got a problem, short stuff?" Dex asked bluntly.

"Huh?" the man said in shock.

"You and your two friends are gonna get in trouble if you keep throwing those looks this way." the Givin replied as he stood up.

"You're calling it a night already?" the bartender asked.

"Yeah, it's getting a bit crowded..." Dex said, "Go ahead and serve these guys, gives 'em something to do other than stare all the goddamn time."

With that, Dex started for the front entrance, sliding his way past the numerous patrons, expecting blaster shots to go off at any moment, but they never did. Now the three humans were making no effort to hide their surveillance, giving blank glares to Dex as he made his hasty retreat from the establishment. The human guarding the door took a step back, allowing the Givin to pass by in peace.

"Much appreciated." Dex said as he looked at the human from head to toe, then walked outside.

It was beginning to rain again, the putrid water that smelled of the body odor of a thousand beings pelted Dex as he crossed the threshold of the doorway. His eyes immediately locked onto the Devaronian, who was still standing near the railing, but was now facing Dex directly, grinning and staring directly at him. Before Dex could speak up, he noticed that on the rooftops of numerous buildings nearby, more similarly dressed goons stood motionless and glared in Dex's direction. There were six that he could see, but for all he knew, there were even more of them lurking nearby.

The worst part, the upper deck of this bar district was now completely devoid of anyone else other than Dex and the Devaronian, as if the devilish thug had cleared them out just for this moment.

"What is this?" Dex asked.

The Devaronian didn't acknowledge Dex's question, replying only with a motion of his hand, signaling the Givin to keep walking. He knew he was vastly outnumbered, and had little choice other than to obey the guy's silent demand. Dex was able to keep his heart rate as normal as possible, and found the it challenging to resist the urge to draw his blaster, but knew that the odds weren't in his favor, he had to count on the thought of at least one of those rooftop goons being a good enough shot to nail him right between the eyes.

Reaching the ground level, Dex knew he only had one advantage, he knew these streets, this was his jungle. Like the Imps, these weirdos might have the numbers and training, but this wasn't their element, and that had to count for something. He picked up the pace, racing through the alleys, twists and turns seemingly at random, plotting out his course as he went, but was stunned, first figuratively as another goon stepped out in front of him, and then second, literally, as the man fired a shot at Dex, striking him in the chest, a non-lethal but very intense shot that dropped Dex to the cold, soaking ground.

Crashing to the ground was the least painful part of the ordeal. This stun shot was of a much more potent output, sending horrible electrical shocks radiating through Dex's limbs, stiffening them to the point of paralysis. He felt as though all the air had been sucked from his lungs, ironic considering his species' ability to resist even the vacuum of space, but he didn't have time to appreciate the irony. He only had it in him to lie still and groan in pain as he looked up at his assailant, who was soon joined by numerous others just like him.

"Man, how has he not been caught already?" one of the goons asked.

"Maybe coming here after him was a waste of time," the shooter added, "I mean look at him."

With each passing second, Dex was able to slowly regain control of his body, though fighting against his own stiffened body was both difficult and excruciating. As he tried to raise his hand up in defense, the Devaronian from earlier stepped into view, looking down at Dex, with the look he could only compare to the same one a spice spider would have after catching its prey.

"I promise you it was worth the trip," the Devaronian said without taking his eyes off Dex, "He's exactly what we need. Can you hear me? Don't tell me Bevel's stun shot fried your ears too."

"My hearing's fine, psycho, I just really wanna know what the hell's going on." Dex said as he tried his best to get up.

"You might wanna stay sitting for a moment." Bevel cautioned.

"You know who we are?" one of the goons asked.

"If I had to guess... I'd say you're bounty hunters, hired by the Empire to take me out." Dex guessed.

"If we were with the Empire, you'd already be dead." one of the thugs said.

"I don't get it." Dex admitted.

"I thought Givins were supposed to be smart." Bevel said.

"This one's full of surprises, isn't he?" the Devaronian asked, "Name's Sergeant Russcalai Bilkomel, we're with the Rebel Alliance."

"Today's your lucky day, Ghost, you've got a new job." one of the goons said with a smile.

"You come work for us, get away from this godforsaken shithole." Bevel added.

"I don't know if you noticed, but my job has been to do exactly that, but for other people, not myself." Dex said.

"Not anymore, friend." Russ said, "You see, we heard about how you were quick to try and frame your actions to make them look like raids from the Alliance. I get that, hell, it's what I would do if I were in your position. Thing is, we don't like taking credit for other people's work."

"So instead of giving me a cease and desist, so to speak..." Dex began, "You corner me in an alley, shoot me with a stungun and threaten me. Message received, sorry!"

"Are you going to let us explain ourselves?" one of the Rebels asked.

"Your activities have already caught the Empire's eye..." Russ began "They know your name, what you look like, and now they're trying to zero in on your strategy and location. If we were able to track you down, they won't be far behind. You don't have to come with us, but it'd be in both of our best interests."

"We took a big risk, coming here to the Imperial Capital, so you better feel special." a Rebel added.

"Yeah, I feel real honored," Dex said, "Getting ambushed in an alley by a bunch of weirdos really makes you feel that way."

"We wanted to show you that you're not invincible like you think you are." Bevel said.

"All it takes is one screwup, one little slip in your plan, and you're dead..." Russ said, "But it doesn't have to be that way. Come with us, make a difference in the bigger picture."

"What about the people I'll be leaving behind?" Dex asked.

"They've been inspired by your initiative." Russ said, "We've been looking into other vigilantes who've popped up since your little crusade. I think Coruscant will have plenty of heroes to go around in your absence. The Ghost is destined for something greater than just the streets of the Coruscant underworld, this is your chance to get away from it all, really make a difference for people who have lost all hope."

It was a lot to take in. Dex knew what his parents would have wanted him to do, they knew he was destined for something like this, but Coruscant was all he knew. It wasn't much of a home, but it was his whole world, everything else seemed so out of reach, it was unfathomable to him. He liked to think that if given the chance, he would jump at the opportunity to leave this planet and its rotten underworld, but he did have that chance, he could have always snuck by alongside the other escapees, gotten offworld alongside them, but he never did. Something compelled him to stay behind, and he wasn't sure why. Perhaps the thought of something else out there frightened him, maybe it was easier to cope with your surroundings if there was no way out. Was it wrong?

"What would you have me do in your rebellion?" Dex asked.

"Once you've proven that you can handle yourself in combat, after a few missions, you could continue your work, escorting people to safety, away from the Empire." Russ said.

"I know what I'd choose." Bevel said.

"It's not your decision though," Russ admitted, "You don't have to come with us, Dex, but this is a one time offer, no take backs. If you decide not to come with us, you will never be able to contact the Rebel Alliance again, and we will not come to your aid when the Imperials capture you, which they will."

"We'll be at Rat's Tavern, you know where it is," one of the goons said, "if you try anything funny, it won't be the Empire that takes you out."

"You have twelve hours, then we leave for good." Russ said as he and the Rebels walked off.

Dex sat on the dull, cobblestone road, still being doused by the light rain, staring blankly ahead at an abandoned mechanic's garage, pondering the choice he'd been given. Ten seconds felt like an eternity, his whole world had changed in a matter of minutes, it seemed everything that had happened had led to this exact moment for a reason. He knew it was an important choice. He knew what the right thing to do was, but it didn't make it any easier. He looked over at the Rebels, who were still walking away down the alley, not speaking a word to each other.

"Hey!" Dex shouted as he stood up.

The Rebels all stopped and turned around to face the Givin. Russ, the fiendish looking Devaronian, could hardly hide his grin, knowing what was coming.

"I'm in." Dex said with a grin of his own, sealing his fate.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5 – Making The Difference**

**Location: Orion IV, Major Rebel Outpost  
Time: 4 Years Before the Battle of Yavin, 2 Months After Joining the Rebellion**

This was an interesting planet, in Dex's opinion. He hadn't heard about this planet before coming here, but that's why it made for such a good hidden base for him and his newfound allies. This was his first time visiting another planet, and it was wildly different from Coruscant. For one, Orion IV wasn't one of those worlds whose surface was covered by one giant city, this one actually had rocky terrain, mountains, forests, and fresh air. The sky's color went through a range of purple and violet varieties throughout the day, something else so alien to him. The wind howled as it scraped against the base's wall, gusts like this seemed to be able to take the skin right off your bones, making Dex glad he was inside.

Dex wasn't sure whether or not he missed the Imperial City. He'd gotten so used to the grit and grime of the big city that being away from it seemed bizarre. He knew he didn't have much time to adjust, he would be shipping out on his first mission soon, he assumed he would know today where the destination would be. The whole process of joining the Rebellion wasn't as formal or by the books, hell, the main reason it took as long as it did to get this far was the extreme vetting process. He figured if Russ hadn't vouched for him, it may have taken even longer. Weeks of being shuffled around between safehouses on Coruscant had finally paid off, allowing him to have a decent view of this new world from the base, which was really just a group of suites at a massive hotel tower. From what Dex could tell, the rebels had rented out an entire floor just for its people here, hiding in plain sight. Only time would tell if that strategy would pay off.

"Yo." a voice called out from the doorway, making Dex jump a little in shock. It was Russ, with his all too familiar grin plastered on his stupid red face.

"You could knock next time." Dex said.

"My people paid for this room, I ain't gotta knock on anything," Russ said, "Anyway, it's time, meeting's in Room 212."

"Is this when you guys finally let me in on what's going on?" Dex asked, "I haven't even met anyone in the chain of command."

"There is no chain of command. We're not as organized as you think," Russ said, "we're working on that every day. There's a lot of disagreement in the different tribes of us Rebels, nobody really wants to agree on one single strategy or even be the figurehead of such a dysfunctional family of freedom fighters. Trust me, you're as much in the loop as we are. Now quit your bitching and let's go."

Without even giving Dex a chance to reply, the gruff alien soldier walked out of the room. Sighing to himself, Dex followed his superior out into the hallway, which was lined with decorative carpet and fancy lighting that he thought only the rich had the luxury of gazing upon, but here he was, a commoner in the presence of some truly fine décor.

They didn't have to walk far, only two doors down. The Devaronian captain slid his keycard, allowing the entryway to slide open and giving the access to this makeshift conference room. Aside from the rather large holoprojector in the middle of the room, it looked like any other room in the hotel. There was only a small light inside, perhaps these guys preferred living like troglodytes. There were five other rebels in the room, two humans, a Gotal, a Gran and a Twi'lek. Dex remembered some of them from this encounter back in the streets of Level 1256, but some were new to him. They all looked at him carefully up and down, sizing up the newest member of their team. Some with looks of skepticism, some with nods of approval. One of them was Bevel, the fair skinned, do-rag wearing human who had stunned him.

"There he is!" Bevel said, "So you're good after all. Sorry about stunning you."

"I gotta give it to you, you Rebels sure do know how to start off a job interview." Dex joked.

"We have a flair for the dramatic at times." the Gotal said, "I'm Tavo, but everyone calls me Iceman."

"It's 'cause all the other Gotals we knew were assholes, but Tavo's cool..." the Twi'lek said, "Name's Marcimenal, Mars for short."

"Trace." the Gran chimed in.

"And I'm Emmett, I guess I'm not the new guy anymore." the second human said.

"Alright, now that our little meet and greet is over, let's get to work..." Russ said as everyone sat down around the projector.

With the press of a button on a small remote, a bright blue flash of light illuminated the dark room as an image of a planet now floated in front of the rebels. Dex didn't recognize this world or the system it was in, but that wasn't too surprising to him, he figured there was no way he was lucky enough to get sent to fight the Empire on some resort world and relax after each battle. Everyone else always gets the fun jobs.

"Feast your eyes on that, my friends..." Russ said, "Ord Dalet, paradise if you're a swamp leech or an oversized, nasty ass arthropod, hell if you're anything else."

"Why do we always get sent to these kinds of planets?" Iceman asked.

"It's a dirty job, someone's gotta do it." Bevel said.

"Easy for you to say, you're the pilot!" Emmett said.

"Alright ladies, goddamn I feel like I'm at a daycare or some shit, you're soldiers, not travel agents." Russ interrupted.

"How bad can it be? I've never seen nature like that." Dex said.

"These ain't the streets on Coruscant, kid. This is the real jungle." Russ reminded.

"Step in the wrong patch of swamp, flesh eating parasites will take your leg from you faster than you can say 'Oh shit'." Mars said with a smile.

"You just follow us and you'll be alright. Mostly..." Russ said dismissively, "Anyway, I think you'll all be glad to hear that I've successfully made contact with Colonel Ingram. As most of you probably know, he has the endorsement of Mon Mothma herself, so the guy's cool, but expensive."

"Sounds real noble." Dex joked.

"Most of the best fighters in the Rebellion are mercenaries just trying to make a living and do the right thing at the same time." Trace interjected.

"That's right," Russ agreed, "Ingram will be leading a six man team to aid us in taking out an Imperial outpost buried deep in the jungle. Our informant says they're developing some kind of all terrain tanks there to keep them away from prying eyes. He tells us they're not currently operational, and we need to keep it that way. This is a big deal, people, this is our first real joint mission with another group. This is our chance to have a banner that others can look to, we can set the precedent for others to come together for the common good."

"Hell yeah!" Iceman said, with encouragement from the others.

"Hell yeah!" Russ echoed, "Bevel's gonna fly us in and drop us off about ten kilometers from the target site. Now I know it's one hell of a hike, especially in that terrain. We'll be getting our feet real wet, but this way we won't trigger any of the base's air raid sirens. They catch even the slightest idea that we're in their airspace, they'll be sending SAM's our way like they're a damn charity service. Besides, if our intel is right, they won't have any heavy armor versatile enough to come after us when we fall back into the jungle. It'll be man vs man out there, and I think you've all proven that you can handle yourselves against Stormtroopers. Don't get cocky though, all it takes is for one screwup, and you're dead. Now Bevel's dropping off our team first, and Ingram's team second so they can hit the base from the other side, so watch your crossfire out there, we're trying to build something here with his guys, not give them a crash course in friendly fire. Any questions?"

"Yeah," Emmett said, "are we still riding in Bevel's piece of shit shuttle? I swear I get whiplash every op we do with that thing."

"No, we're flying first class, just for you, kid..." Russ said mockingly, "Yes, we're taking his shuttle, it's got everything we need for the job. Now does anyone have a real question?"

Aside from some playful snickering, nobody else spoke up. Excitement was in the air, even if nobody said anything, it was electrifying, a real adventure on some distant alien planet. They were ready.

"Alright boys, let's start packing." Russ said with his trademark grin.

**Location: Ord Dalet, a mostly uncharted planet in the Galactic Mid Rim  
Time: 4 Years Before the Battle of Yavin, 2 Months After Joining the Rebellion**

Emmett was right about one thing, this shuttle was a real piece of junk. It was a Neimoidian Sheathipede shuttle from the Clone Wars, and Dex wondered how Bevel got ahold of something that old, but he figured it just goes to show how resourceful and adaptable these guys are. That being said, it was a miracle this thing was even functioning. He could hear the sound of the trees below scraping the bottom the hull as the ship kept as low as possible, at the cost of the outer integrity of the ship. Every slight movement seemed to send the occupants thrashing around like they were at a concert, and bizarre and expensive sounding mechanical noises made Dex wonder if they were going to need to be towed off this planet's surface after the mission. Somehow, they were able to cram two entire teams of rebels into this tiny ship, standing packed in like canned Dac krakana. Ingram and all of his soldiers were human, all but one, a burly and quiet Elom, armed with a heavy repeating rifle.

"I want a nice, quick and clean job, everybody." Ingram said, "We do this right, we'll all be out of here before the sun sets."

"You really don't want to be stuck on this planet overnight, that's when the real nasty bugs come out." Russ added.

"I've heard they can grow to be over a meter tall." a female soldier chimed in.

"Bigger, if you can believe it." Mars said.

"That's what she said." Emmett joked.

"Classy." Mars said as he rolled his eyes.

"I doubt she ever said it to you." the female soldier said with a grin. The shuttle erupted with Oooooo's and laughter.

"What?" Emmett responded, offended.

"Good one, Sam." one of her comrades said.

"It wasn't even that funny." Emmett said under his breath.

"One minute!" Bevel called out from the cockpit.

With that, the ship's ramp dropped open with a loud creak, letting it skid against the canopy which they were surprisingly very close to, even closer than Dex thought they were. The thick brush below was next to impossible to see through, a mess of green with a thick, organic aroma that seemed to radiate the heat of a thousand suns.

"There's a small clearing up ahead, looks like the mouth of a creek or something, probably about as good as you're gonna get it." Bevel called out.

"That'll make it easier for us to find our way back." Russ said.

With that, the shuttle slowed down and eventually came to a stop above the gap, which was about fifteen feet across, just barely enough for the soldiers to repel down. Dex and the others checked their harnesses and secured their weapons and ammo to their bodies as they got in position.

"Good luck out there, boys." Ingram said.

"You too, keep your heads down out there." Russ said as he leapt out first.

One by one, the rest of Russ's team followed, sliding down their ropes out of the shuttle and into the jungle of this hostile alien world. Dex seemed to hit every branch on the way down, covering himself in leaves and hideous insects, which he furiously brushed off of him as best he could. It felt like a million degrees down here, he wasn't sure how anything could call this place home. As he landed on the ground, he splashed some water onto his body in an attempt to cool down.

"Man, if you're hot already, you're in for a long day." Iceman said as he unhooked his harness.

"City boy is out of his element." Emmett joked.

"I am the element, biznatch." Dex said as he stood back up.

"He's a better shot than you are, Emmett..." Russ said, "Let's get moving, Ingram's people will be deploying soon."


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6: Going South**

**Location: Ord Dalet, a mostly uncharted planet in the Galactic Mid Rim  
Time: 4 Years Before the Battle of Yavin, 2 Months After Joining the Rebellion**

"Only a bit further," Russ said, "it should be in visual range real soon."

It was nasty, trudging through the disease ridden mud which now caked their boots. Still not as bad as the sewers back in the Imperial City though. Stealth was made easier due to the fact that the insects and other fauna seemed to make it their life's mission to be as loud as possible, their distant shrieks and wails filled the team's ears and drowned out the sound of their chatter and movement. Although it seemed like a good idea to put a base in a very inaccessible location such as this, it seemed the heroes had plenty of cover out here, and infinite directions in which to retreat if necessary.

"I see it, boss." Trace said.

"Only the guy with three eyes could possibly see through this shit." Dex said.

"No really, look, right over there." Trace said as he pointed.

Sure enough, with enough squinting, Dex could see that the Gran was right. Buried behind a thick mossy curtain and with no artificial lighting on its walls, the Imperial base sat quietly, the perfect target. The massive steel structure appeared to be at least six stories high and sat in a clearing, with just enough room for TIE Fighters to leave the facility without bumping into any trees. The closer the team got to the base, the more soldiers they could see patrolling the perimeter. Dex hoped that the element of surprise and guerilla tactics could make up for the contrast in numbers.

"We have the target in sight." Russ said into his mic.

"Copy that, we have visual." Ingram replied through his headset, "Ready when you are."

"Alright boys," Russ said as he turned to his men, "Go for the guards in the towers first, they're going to be the biggest problem for us. They're probably going to send out a second wave of troops. After we mop them up, we'll move in. Mars, Trace, you two will stay out here with two of Ingram's men. The rest of you will be going inside, we'll split into three different teams and take out specific targets in the base."

"Who's going where inside the base?" Dex asked.

"Our intel is only so precise," Russ admitted, "There's no point in putting together a game plan inside until we know exactly what we're dealing with inside. We'll improvise if we have to, we've done it before. Let's just focus on getting inside the base first."

"It'll be just like Caamas Minor." Iceman said with a smile.

"I don't know what that is." Dex said deadpan.

"Let's do this." Emmett said as everyone got into position.

The troops spread out in a semicircle, with Ingram's men doing the same on the opposite side of the base, forming the perimeter of death they needed to secure this place. Wading through the thick brush as quietly as they could, they prepared for their assault on the outpost. For some, it was their third op, others, they'd lost count, and for Dex, it was his first. None of that seemed to matter, though, everyone felt the tension, you couldn't afford to let tally marks cloud your judgment, not in war. Everyone's ticket gets punched eventually, and the rebels knew that.

Before the rebels could take their first shot, the sudden and startling sound of a thermal detonator ripped through the air, sucking the air out of the lungs of those nearest to the blast, which incinerated one of Ingram's men. Half a second later, the unmistakable ping of a sniper blast rang out, striking Mars in the head, killing the Twi'lek instantly.

"FIRE!" Russ screamed.

Shots were being thrown not just from the base, but from all around. None of it made sense. The Imperials ambushed their ambush? Dex knew he didn't have time to figure out how they managed to do it, all he had time to do was do what he was trained to do, shoot. One of the perimeter guards fired into the brush, narrowly missing Dex, who returned fire, hitting the trooper in the chest, then focused on the guards in the towers. There were more of them now, and with the high ground, it made their job significantly easier as they rained blaster fire down on the unprepared rebels, killing Emmett and scraping one of Russ's horns.

"SHIT!" Russ shouted in pain as he ducked down, "FALL BACK!"

Hearing those words made Dex shudder. He hadn't known Russ for long, but one thing he did know was that he was not one to back down from a fight. Even in this moment, however, even a soldier of pride could see the tactical disadvantage they were now at, being shot at from multiple angles, on top of clearly bad intel, it was one big flustercluck and they all knew it.

With Russ guarding their six, the rebels obeyed and fell back into the wilderness, ducking and dodging the blaster bolts and the jungle all the same. Popping off shots of their own when they could wasn't easy, most of their bolts missing, but a few hitting the stormtroopers hidden in the wilderness that surrounded them. Ingram and his men caught up soon after as well, joining in the mad dash uphill, far away from the base.

"Bevel, we're compromised!" Russ said.

"Meet us at the backup evac site!" Ingram shouted into his radio.

"It sounds crazy down there!" Bevel replied, "I can see the shots from way up here! Lose the heat **before **you get here, will ya?"

"We'll try and shake 'em!" Russ said.

Adrenaline fueled their every step, their senses heightened like never before, knowing they were losing, big time. They didn't feel any of the pain, the exhaustion, sprinting through razor sharp thorns and heavy branches, the parasitic creatures that latched onto their bodies, the only thing they could feel was the heat radiating off the blaster bolts that zipped past them. With those heightened senses, though, they all noticed something, all at the same time.

"They're not following us." Trace said, out of breath.

Indeed, the Imps held position the entire way. Russ looked around, as if plotting something out in his head at light speed.

"They were herding us this way on purpose." he said as he looked around, "Colonel, what do you know about this planet's indigenous population?"

"They don't like outsiders." Ingram replied coldly as he too looked around.

"Oh shit, we have to cut through their territory to get to the secondary LZ, don't we?" Dex asked.

"Give the man a prize..." Iceman said as he reloaded his weapon.

"This is their jungle," Russ said, "**All **of this is their territory."

The sound of a wooden arrow striking a tree near Dex broke the near silence, instinctively making him jump back. More of these arrows pelted their position, and it didn't take long for them to see where they were coming from. These Daletans were clamoring through the trees in the distance, furiously speeding towards the intruders. The natives looked like giant green insects, with six legs and a large torso with six arms, with a menacing face donning a single green eye that seemed to glare intently at the rebels. Each of these Daletans carried primitive but effective weapons, mostly crossbows, daggers and dartguns.

"Man, those are some nasty bugs!" Sam said as she opened fire.

"Woah, can we even do that?" one of Ingram's men asked.

"They're trying to kill us, screw it!" Dex said as he too opened fire on the natives.

The rebels stood their ground against the storm of arrows and darts, returning fire with their advanced blasters, cutting the Daletans down as they tried to swarm. However, it seemed that they were multiplying, killing one only seemed to allow three more to take its place. An arrow winged Trace in the shoulder, but didn't deter him in gunning down as many of the attackers as he could.

"Run and shoot, boys!" Ingram called out.

With that, the soldiers made their way towards the evac site, but not at the cost of their assault on the relentless natives. Ingram screamed as a long, wooden arrow shot through his back and stuck out his chest. He collapsed to his knees for a few moments, trying to adjust to the pain. Blood seeping from his mouth, he found the strength to stand up again and keep running, albeit much slower than before. It wasn't long before a second arrow made its mark, piercing his throat and silencing him, sending him spiraling to the ground sideways and crashing onto the wet forest floor, dead.

"NOOOO!" two of Ingram's men shouted.

The death of their commanding officer seemed to spark a rage that fueled every pull of the trigger, blasting the spider-like denizens and reducing them to cinders. It wasn't long before another arrow made its mark, piercing Trace's back, carving through one of his many arteries and dropping the Gran to the ground in a heap.

"Goddammit, give them all you've got!" Russ yelled as he unloaded his rifle into the natives.

Despite having killed two of the intruders, the natives seemed to catch onto the fact they'd lost far more of their own, and were gradually slowing their assault on the rebels. Now it was less of a swarm and more of a winnable battle as the Daletans climbed their way back into the upper parts of the trees and out of range. Not wanting to push their luck, the rebels took the victory and continued sprinting uphill towards the evac site.

"I think they got the message." Dex said.

"We must have killed fifty of theirs." the Elom added.

"We're not even yet," one of Ingram's men said, "I say we finish them off, burn their goddamn trees down and roast the survivors."

"Look, I'm sorry about Ingram..." Russ said, "But we have to keep moving, or none of us are gonna make it."

"He's right, Fields..." Sam said, "We all loved the gruff bastard, but he wouldn't want us to risk our lives just to get back at those natives."

"Alright," Fields agreed, "let's keep moving then."

"How much further away is this backup LZ?" Sam asked.

"It's ten kliks south of here," Russ said, "Bevel marked the spot on our Tac/com, see for yourself. I say get a good look at it now, we have to shut them off in a few. The Imps might not be able to listen in on our operation here, but they can spot electrical spikes in the jungle and track us that way. I just need to get in touch with-"

The devilish looking sergeant found himself interrupted by the scream of one of Ingram's men, as a large machete flew through the air and landed hard right in the back of the man, dropping him to his knees as he teetered on the edge of life and death.

"Good lord, where the hell did that come from?" Fields shouted as he looked around frantically.

Sam rushed to aid her mortally wounded friend as he sat there dying, but there was no point. Grasping his hand tightly, she watched the life fade from his eyes as he slumped back towards the forest floor, dead. Tears in her eyes, she stood back up and readied her weapon as she too scanned the thick jungle canopy around them. All Dex knew was that the attacker was in the trees, not unlike the natives they encountered, but the Daletans were brazen in their assault, not stealthy like this one.

For the briefest of moments, Dex caught the glint of a sniper's scope in one of the trees ahead. The shellshocked Givin fired off two rounds from his blaster rifle as fast as he could, but wasn't fast enough to stop the assailant from shooting a round of his own. Fields, one of Ingram's men, was situated right next to Dex. The young man's head literally exploded all over Dex, followed by the crack of a slugthrower in the distance. Stumbling backwards in terror and crashing into the trunk of a tree, Dex couldn't find the air to scream or do anything except stare at the splattered remains of the brave soldier he had fought alongside.

If Dex had known this was what he was agreeing too, perhaps he would have stayed in the slums back on Coruscant. He thought he'd seen it all, but while the streets could be inhospitable and dangerous, he hadn't had the displeasure of having someone's head disintegrate all over him. It seemed like everything around him came to an end in that moment, the worst tunnel vision, like time stopped in that moment for him the way it had for Fields.

Only the strong hand and pull from his sergeant could snap him out of the shock, as Russ brought Dex back up to his feet and forced him into proper cover.

"Come on, Romo, we need you here right now!" Russ said.

"What the hell is that? Another native?" Iceman said.

"No, that's a Trandoshan!" Leonard shouted.

"That lizard killed Mortimer and Fields." Sam said.

"What is it even doing here?" Dex asked.

"Who knows?" Russ said, "Let's just kill the damn thing before it gets any more of us!"

It was really quiet now. The wildlife in the surrounding wilderness seemed to be keeping noise down to a minimum, probably in reaction to the hellish fighting going on now. They could only slightly hear the scurrying sounds of the Trandoshan as it made its way through the trees high up above the jungle floor.

"Shit, I think I see it!" Iceman said as he prepared a thermal detonator.

Perhaps it was intentional, as once Iceman stepped out of cover, another shot rang out, and the Gotal shrieked as a rifle shot struck him in the leg, but not before he could successfully throw his grenade, which exploded right where he wanted it to. The Trandoshan screamed as he, and the massive branch he was perched on, fell from above and crashed hard onto the ground.

"YEAH!" Russ shouted, "Iceman, you good?"

"It hurts really bad," the wounded Gotal muttered, "but I think I'll live."

With that, the rebels rushed over to the crash site, the massive burned log that once served as the perfect sniper's nest turned against its user. However, the Trandoshan was nowhere to be found, save for his own severed leg pinned underneath the wooden trap. It was still bleeding, and wasn't cauterized at the stump, which could only mean one thing.

"Dude, he cut off his own leg like it was nothing." Leonard said.

"Then he's still out there," Sam said, "but he's hurt, bad."

"Let's hurt him some more." Dex said with newfound confidence.

Before they could even begin to formulate a plan, Dex found himself being shoved to the ground by Sinthro, the burly Elom, as a throwing dagger zipped past his head and buried itself deep into the tree next to him. Sinthro didn't waste any time and charged at the Trandoshan, full force, his massive paws thudding and echoing loudly before he leapt towards the injured lizard, tackling him and sending the two both tumbling down a hill.

"Sinthro!" Sam screamed.

The survivors rushed to check on Sinthro and the assailant, who were both still rolling down the hill hard, crashing into rocks and trees on their way down before coming to a rest at the base of the mossy hill. Sinthro, it seemed, had taken the brunt of the fall, while the Trandoshan was ironically protected and cushioned by the big furry Elom's body. With a terrifying warrior's battle cry, the Trandoshan lifted his machete above his head, but found himself unable to finish the job as Dex fired his DL-44 just one time, right into the lizard's back, killing him for good this time.

The battle scarred rebels rushed down the hill, careful not to trip and end up like their Elom friend, and reached the base of the hill in no time. Thankfully, Sinthro appeared to be okay, and aside from some bloody scratches, looked otherwise unhamred. Dex extended his hand out to the soldier, who accepted, and only when helping lift the alien to his feet did Dex realize how heavy the big guy was.

"You saved my life, man." Dex said, "That dagger would have gotten me right in the head."

"Well, you took him out, so I guess we're even..." the Elom said, "I recognize this one. His name's Visk, he's part of a clan that has no allegiance to anyone. They hunt the Empire, the Rebellion, smugglers, gangsters, bounty hunters, anyone who can put up a fight. It's like a sport for them." Sinthro said.

"Yeah, well it looks like this one met his match." Dex said as he kicked the corpse in the side.

"I've never seen such commitment from any hunter before. I mean he ignored every single injury just so he could keep killing." Leonard said.

"Trandoshans are strange creatures," Russ said, "Their sense of right and wrong is skewed, to say that least. They have a strange affinity for slugthrowers, like the one he used on us."

"Old fashioned," Sam said, "well looks like the times caught up with him."

"What do you think he was doing out here?" Dex asked, "Were we his targets? Or was it the natives? Or the Empire?"

"I don't think we'll ever know for sure," Sam replied, "He doesn't seem to be in the mood for an exposé."

"We need to get Iceman and keep moving towards the evac site," Russ said, "And make sure the only thing between us and the evac site is the jungle."

All in agreement, the soldiers rushed up the hill back towards Iceman, who was still sitting down clutching his badly wounded leg.

"Can bacta fix that?" Sam asked.

"No." Russ said, "We need to get him to an elevated position, further away from the base, I might be able to treat his wound if we can find a safe spot to do it."

"Just leave me, guys..." Iceman said wearily, "I'll watch your back, make sure you're clear."

"We can't lose anyone else!" Dex said, "I'll carry you myself. Let's go."

Using every ounce of strength the exhausted Givin still had, Dex managed to lift Iceman up and follow close behind the rest of the fleeing rebels. Dex knew the difference between the feeling of sweat and the feeling of blood, so he knew the trickling down his side was blood from the Gotal's gaping bullet wound. There was a lot of it, so he tried to double the pace up the hill, which was much more work than he thought it'd be, that, combined with the oven-like heat and thick air made it a hellish hike, but if it meant saving a life in these bleakest of situations, it was more than worth it.

"Damn, Icey-Boy, if you plan on having me carry you around in the future, lose some weight first, would ya?" Dex joked, "What? Bad joke?"

Dex looked at the wounded Gotal, whose eyes were blank, eternally fixated on something distant. Dex slowed his pace and eventually stopped, realizing Iceman was lost forever. The others caught on as well and looked back sadly, any hope of saving their brave comrade just lost. Dex gently lowered the dead rebel down to the ground and rested his head as carefully as he could.

"Son of a bitch!" Russ said as he kicked a nearby tree, sending bark flying.

"I don't get it, it's like they knew exactly what our plan was." Dex asked, "Were they listening in on our comms?"

"It was all encrypted, beyond their abilities, trust me. Our intel was off, plain and simple." Russ said quietly, his smile seemingly permanently erased, "I had a responsibility to these men."

"Hey, you said it yourself, our intel was off." Dex said, "It's not on you."

"I wish I could see it that way," Russ admitted, "Hopefully you don't ever have to be in that position."

By now, the sun was just moments away from setting, darkness now fell in the jungle, rendering it a nearly pitch black hellhole, impossible to navigate without some serious skill and a little bit of luck. The only thing that felt good was a slight nighttime breeze that swept through the brush and ever so slightly cooled off the five rebels. In any other context, it would be a great feeling, but it gave them little relief, knowing they were still in a heap of danger on this primitive world.

"Bevel, come in." Russ said into his Tac/com.

"What's the word, boss?" Bevel replied.

"We lost a lot of people, bro." Russ said somberly, "Ingram, Iceman, Mars, Emmett, and lots of Ingram's men. There's only five of us left."

"Holy shit..." Bevel said, "I can't believe it."

"It's been a shitty day, everything in this jungle wants us dead. We might be a little late to the evac site." Russ admitted.

"That's okay, seriously, just get here in one piece." Bevel said.

"No, listen if we're not there by sunrise, you go, you find Mon Mothma and you tell her what happened today." Russ ordered.

"I can't just leave you guys here!" Bevel shouted.

"I'm giving you an order, Bevel." Russ said sternly as he cut off his Tac/com and motioned for the others to do so as well, "Hopefully that'll buy us some time. They'll have to track us the old fashioned way now."

Dex followed suit and took his Tac/com from his ear and switched it off, then placed it into his pocket where it wouldn't get lost. If it gave them even the slightest hint of an increased chance of survival, he'd take it. Things were bleak, he knew it. They were now at 45.45% their initial numbers after only about an hour or so of starting their mission, and if this trend was to continue, they all had much less than an hour before their numbers dwindled to zero, and now with the combined negative variables of nighttime, lack of intel, and sleep deprivation all stacked up, it might not even be half an hour before they all met their demises.

Only ten minutes into their hurrying through the darkness, a massive, impossible to miss sound cut through the forest, shaking the ground and sending the wildlife fleeing in every direction, followed by the wailing of something high above. It was all mechanical, inorganic, cold, intentional. Anyone could tell you what it was, but to the rebels, it was the most terrifying collection of sounds imaginable. TIE Fighters, high above, blasting away at the canopy and turning around for more passes, and the heavy footsteps of a fully operational walker behind them. Not only was their intel off, it was dead wrong, a costly mistake that was quickly sinking in to the terrified rebels.

"Oh my god..." Russ said, "They're coming."


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7: Stacked Deck**

**Location: Ord Dalet, a mostly uncharted planet in the Galactic Mid Rim  
Time: 4 Years Before the Battle of Yavin, 2 Months After Joining the Rebellion**

"Oh snap." Dex said, checking the charge left on his rifle and pistol.

"Our intel was **way **off, dude!" Leonard said, "Those walkers weren't supposed to be operational! What do we do?"

"We take them out, that's what we do!" Russ said, "Get it together, soldier!"

They couldn't see them yet, but it didn't take anything more than their ears to tell what they were up against. One walker, dozens of stormtroopers, headed right towards them. It was the perfect shitstorm, especially considering it was the dead of night, and these bucketheads were bound to have the appropriate gear to spot the rebels in the darkest of darks. Not only that, they were sure to be pissed, coming out here for blood, mopping up the ones who survived being herded into the natives' territory.

"If we get out of this alive," Dex said, "I'm going to have a stern talk with somebody about some kind of workman's comp, or something, no breaks in sight, come on."

"I'm sorry man," Sam said, "I'm too scared to laugh at that."

"None taken." Dex said.

"Dex, when that walker gets here, we need to take it out together." Russ said, "Everyone else, focus on the footsoldiers."

"How exactly do you plan to take that bigass thing out of the picture?" Dex asked.

"I've got a belt of thermal detonators," Russ said, tossing the unarmed grenades to Dex, "I'll distract it, you can plant these on its legs, hopefully that'll take it out."

"You'll distract it..." Dex said, "You're gonna be bait for a killing machine?"

"Don't screw up, kid." Russ said, "They're gonna be here any second now."

There wasn't any more time for small talk and Dex knew it, despite the fact that doing so helped calm his nerves, it was nerves that were going to keep him alive as long as luck would allow it. He had to assume that these Imps knew at least some of this forest, whereas he and his crew did not. His hands were shaking ever so slightly, like they did the first time he killed a sentient being, those two Imperial Officers back on Coruscant. Only now, it seemed it was his ticket getting punched.

Spreading out to avoid being bunched up seemed to be the right idea, as the walker finally came into view, smashing through some of the thinner trees with its sheer weight. It was unlike any of the previous walkers the Empire had experimented with. Like the rest, it stood upright on two legs which supported a large head and two blaster cannons. However, this one was more than twice the size of the others, and it sported two additional cannons on each side of its head, adding to its menacing appearance. That, combined with the two viewports, gave this walker a face, with a seemingly dead, expressionless glare that seemed to give off the feeling of death itself. Its big, mechanical legs thudded and cranked with a sound that Dex knew he would never forget, it was the sound of impending doom and he knew it.

Only a few seconds after the massive walker opened fire with all of its cannons, the stormtroopers came up behind it and joined in the firefight. What they lacked in marksmanship, they made up for with their numbers and tenacity. It was okay anyway, most of the carnage was to be wrought by the metallic murder-machine, they were only there for overkill. Dug in deep, the rebels did what they could to return fire on the advancing Imperials, but the Imperials weren't making their job easy.

"Dex, stay put!" Russ said, "We're going to fall back and lead them closer to you so you can plant the explosives!"

"Stay out of the gunfire, got it, I think I can do that!" Dex replied with a thumbs up.

"It looks like one of those old AT-PTs, but way bigger!" Leonard shouted.

"Meaner too, those cannons are huge!" Sam said.

"It doesn't matter, we can do this!" Russ said.

"Yes sir!" Sinthro said, "We'll purge them from these forests!"

"That's the spirit!" Russ shouted, "Let's go, I'll cover you!"

With that, the brave Devaronian jumped from cover and sprinted to the side, firing wildly at the Imperials and screaming as he did so. However, as the others got up and retreated, it became apparent the Imperials hadn't fallen for the diversion. Russ's red face seemed to turn pale white as the soldiers instead focused their fire on the three rebels who fled, striking Leonard in the back and head numerous times, killing him. More blaster fire struck the burly Sinthro, who was merely slowed down but not seriously wounded by the fire as he covered the much smaller and vulnerable Sam.

As the two fled, they returned as much gunfire as they could, picking off a handful of stormtroopers, but not enough. Adrenaline fueled each of the Elom's steps, shrugging off the pain as he charged away from the blaster fire, shielding his friend from the carnage. Eventually, the walker put an end to the Elom's suffering, one shot dropping not only him, but Sam as well, the two collapsing into the thick brush together and out of sight.

"GODDAMMIT!" Russ screamed, "I'LL KILL EVERY ONE OF YOU!"

It was only after massacring the other soldiers that the Imperials took Sergeant Russ seriously. Through the tears in his eyes, Dex could see that Russ was holding onto a small portable rocket launcher, he must have had it in his bag up until now, Dex wasn't aware such a device was even part of the mission. Now he was a real threat to the walker, but it was probably just for show, allowing Dex the chance to make the real killing blow with the grenade belt he gripped so tightly. As Russ fired the missile towards a cluster of stormtroopers, Dex prepared his big move.

The walker hobbled its way closer and closer as it focused on Russ, its cannons screaming just overhead, the head radiating off of them was intense. Eventually, it made its way close enough for Dex to examine the underbelly of the mechanical beast for a weakpoint. His heart thudding in his chest at twice the normal speed, he saw his opportunity and took it, launching the primed belt at the spot his Givin brain decided would do the most damage. He calculated his throw almost perfectly, within a few degrees or so, but it was close enough.

He didn't have time to fall back alongside Russ, so instead he chose to continue his momentum and charge towards the remaining stormtroopers. Having been unaware of his presence, they found themselves caught off guard as Dex picked them off one by one with his DL-44 with ease. Before the last one could hit the ground, the grenade belt exploded, knocking the walker off balance and sending it crashing to the jungle floor in a heap, along with a tree which slammed into the roof and rolled off.

"YES!" Dex said as he jumped with joy and threw a fist in the air, "WE GOT HIM, RUSS!"

Dex's cry of enthusiasm was only replied with by silence and jungle ambience. A few moments of this felt like an eternity as it began to sink in. All of the relief he felt suddenly washed away as he felt himself sprinting towards Russ's last known location, getting there much faster than he thought possible. There lay the horribly wounded sergeant, a massive burn in his lower abdomen, nearly severing his right leg.

"No..." Dex muttered, "No no no no-"

"Dex, it's okay-" Russ began.

"We need to get you out of here, yesterday!" Dex shouted as he lifted his sergeant up and began running towards the LZ.

"Please just stop here, I can't go any further." Russ said weakly.

"We can make it a bit further, I can hear the creek up ahead!" Dex said.

"Dex, seriously! Stop!" Russ said with all the strength he could.

Dex couldn't ignore it anymore. The labored breathing and weak wheezes of pain, Russ was dying and they both knew it. As the terrified Givin let his friend down gently, he couldn't help but notice how content Russ looked, as if accepting what had happened. Dex, on the other hand, had a hard time finding any of this acceptable. He knelt down close to Russ, his last real friend.

"I screwed up, Russ..." Dex said somberly.

"No, you did what you were supposed to," Russ argued, "When I told you not to screw up, I meant I didn't want to see any more of my people die. You took that bitch out. You did your part, and I did mine."

"There's more of them out there, man!" Dex said, "They're going to send more out here and they'll finish us off."

"Not you," Russ said, "Me, I'm already one foot out the door. But not you. You were always destined to do great things, Dex. I could see it when we picked you up off the streets of Coruscant. You're going to make an impact in the galaxy, for the rebellion, and for yourself. You'll get out of here, and you'll change things. This is the last mission for Russcalai. But not for the Ghost. Don't become one for real."

"What the hell am I supposed to do?!" Dex shouted, "You can't just leave me, man!"

The life faded from the Devaronian's eyes as he slumped back, his final mission over, leaving Dex Romo all alone in the forest. He never felt so alone in his whole life, even on Coruscant, all those years spent as a vagrant, nothing could prepare him for this. Knowing death would soon claim him too only made the anxiety worse, every snapping branch and sudden sound feeding his paranoia as he backed away and into a tree, where he slid down and crouched behind as cover. The LZ seemed like it was a million miles away by now, there was no way he'd make it in time and he knew it.

The weight of the entire situation made him collapse, sending him into a sobbing fit. He didn't care, there was nobody around to make fun of him for it. Was this what he signed up for? Was this the right time to make amends with whatever deity happened to be the one true deity? As he tried to figure out how to pray to the right God and earn his spot in a decent afterlife, a sound broke the silence. He couldn't exactly tell what the sound was, it was muffled and weak, but it sounded deliberate. As he readied his blaster, he found himself standing up instinctively, searching for the source. Whatever it was that would do him in, he knew he was gonna give it one hell of a fight.

Sneaking as carefully as he could, the muffled sound became a little bit clearer, it was a female voice, she was struggling from underneath something. It took Dex that long to figure it out. With his hope ever so slightly restored, he rushed towards where Sinthro and Sam had been shot down. The smoke from the burned grass around them was almost completely gone, but its smell still permeated and filled the air the closer he got. Finally, he reached the body of Sinthro, charred and scorched by the intense cannons of the walker. Pushing his fallen comrade's body out of the way hurt, he admired the big guy and his prowess, but it was to save the life of another, for underneath was Sam, unharmed. Sinthro's last act paid off, only adding to Dex's respect for the Elom.

Before Sam could thank Dex, he embraced his comrade, who only moments ago he had presumed dead. She returned the affection, both relieved to know they were not the last ones standing as they'd thought. In the dead of night, the two found a good place to lay low and try to ambush the next wave of Imperials who would surely be on their way. Until then, small talk was all they had.

"You think the informant set us up?" Dex asked.

"Either that, or he got compromised, and the Imps used him against us. Either way, they won." Sam said.

"Don't say that." Dex said.

"I'm not saying we're going to die, I'm saying that tactically speaking, they won." Sam said, "So while we're here, tell me your story."

"Alright," Dex began, "I was born on Coruscant, level 1256. It was bad. My parents and I couldn't leave, the Empire kept us and just about anyone in our place. Disease killed my mom, dad got caught in a shootout and died when I was thirteen. I took up a job as a dianoga killer, did that for quite a few years. Home owners, businesses, sometimes Imperials, they'd pay me a pretty decent amount to go into the sewers to take care of the dianoga infestations. I got pretty good with a blaster doing that, so good that I used my skills as a vigilante. It didn't pay well, but I wasn't exactly rolling in credits before, so I didn't mind. The Empire torched my workplace, so I started smuggling people past Imperial checkpoints so they could get offworld."

"You were their shepherd." Sam said with admiration.

"That's what I wanted to be." Dex said, "Killing dianogas was one thing, they were dumb animals, they didn't know any better, but fighting the Empire, saving people's lives, now that was a job I could believe in. I never told them my name, but they all knew who I was, the good people of 1256 called me The Ghost. They said it was because I was mysterious, tough to kill, fearless, unable to be caught. That, and because they all thought I looked like a ghost. I never took offense to it. Eventually my work caught the attention of the rebellion. They found me and offered me a way out of that hell hole. Been with 'em ever since. What about you?"

"I'm not sure where I was born," Sam admitted, "I never knew my parents. I was a baby when they abandoned me on some cantina on an orbital station over Ithor. I got adopted there by a couple of Ithorians, and they took me to their home in Tafanda Bay on the surface. It was great growing up on Ithor, it was a beautiful place, and everyone was so nice. I didn't even care that I was the only human living there, I felt like I was one of them."

"Wow, what made you leave?" Dex wondered out loud.

"I wanted to see more of the galaxy." Sam answered, "I joined the Empire as a security intern, back then I thought it was a noble job, I was so naive. They had me cover up so many atrocities, I couldn't even name them all. I hated my job, but they crossed the line when they threatened to destroy Ithor just because my people were hesitant to hand over some of their biological studies. That was too much for me, so I leaked a bunch of the stories to the public and ran. The rebellion thankfully got to me before the Empire did, and like you said, been with 'em ever since."

"So how'd you go from a cushy desk job to the frontlines?" Dex asked.

"The fight against the Empire was personal." Sam said as she checked her rifle, "After they threatened my home and my people, I wanted to take a rifle and take on the whole Empire myself."

"That's kind of what we're doing now I guess." Dex noticed.

"We're going to do this, you know." Sam said.

"How do you know that?" Dex asked.

"Because I know you didn't crawl out of the underworld on Coruscant to die in this stupid jungle, and there's no way in hell my fight with the Empire ends here before I can make any real difference." Sam boldly stated.

"So you're saying you know because you say so?" Dex asked.

"Pretty much." Sam answered with a smile.

"I can't argue with that." Dex said, "Either way, I'm glad I have such an awesome battle buddy."

Yet again, another sound broke through the ambience of Ord Dalet's jungle. It was the not-so-subtle marching of more stormtroopers, minus the walker this time. The two surviving rebel warriors instinctively went into battle mode. Their newfound friendship seemed to fuel their willingness to keep fighting and try to prolong whatever fate was in store for them.

"No walker this time," Sam noted, "We might have lucked out and taken out their one and only."

"Law of averages," Dex joked, "Took it this long to kick in."


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8: Against All Odds**

**Location: Ord Dalet, a mostly uncharted planet in the Galactic Mid Rim  
Time: 4 Years Before the Battle of Yavin, 2 Months After Joining the Rebellion**

Sam's keen eye was able to spot the white armor of the stormtroopers amongst the thick green jungle. Thank goodness the Empire didn't care enough to issue their troops camouflage colors. Without a word, Sam and Dex got into position, counting on the possibility that the enemy would attempt to flank them from multiple angles if given the chance. As the stormtroopers came within range, Sam fired the first shot, nailing one of them in the head and provoking the rest into firing back. There seemed to be a lot more of them this time, probably to make up for the loss of their experimental walker.

The heavy sound of a mounted E-WEB blaster mixed things up a bit, this thing could tear right through any tree, no matter how thick. The stormtroopers kept their chatter to a minimum as to not reveal their positions, but their easily traceable blaster shots did that for them.

"You got some on your left!" Sam shouted.

Trusting his new friend's instincts, Dex spun around and focused his fire on his left flank just in time to cut down two stormtroopers who were almost in position to put an end to his days. Before he could turn around to thank his comrade, the ever so small white patch amongst the grass in the treeline sent Dex diving towards her, knocking her to the ground before the sniper shot could take her out.

"Holy shit," she said, "That was close!"

"I gotta get him before he relocates!" Dex said.

With a bout of courage, Dex leaped up and fired three shots towards the spot he last saw the sniper, eliminating him with ease before ducking back under cover as a hail of blaster bolts pelted the surrounding area. The flurry of bolts came to a sudden stop, all was quiet in the forest for a second or two before a rocket slammed into the tree next to their cover. Tree bark flew at them like shrapnel, cutting them and deafening them for a few moments. The tree split from its base and toppled over in the opposite direction, thankfully, but with that resumed the flood of blaster bolts.

"I'm out of juice for my rifle..." Dex said.

"Here," Sam said as she dug around, "I've got one mag left."

"No, you're gonna need it to cover me." Dex said.

"Where are you going?" she demanded.

"Russ dropped his gun where he got hit," Dex said, "If I can get to it, we'll have more than enough to take out the rest of these guys!"

"I got you, bro." Sam said with a smile.

Putting his life in the hands of his new friend yet again, Dex crouch rolled from cover and, while firing his trusty DL-44, sprinted towards where Russ had been hit by the walker. Even in death, his sergeant helped protect his soldier, Dex noted this as he picked up the rifle and took cover behind a tree, looking to Sam and nodding that he was okay. Their eyes adjusted to the dark, they seemed to become shadows themselves, slipping in and out of cover as they took potshots at their targets. Every successful hit helped change their last stand into a winnable battle. Together, over a period of five or so minutes, the pair managed to gun down fifteen stormtroopers, without getting tagged in the process. After the battle was over, the two embraced again, happy to be alive and completely unharmed.

"I told you we'd do it!" Sam said.

"You sure did, mate!" Dex replied, "Let's scrape up as much ammo as we can and try to put some more distance between us and the base."

"Sounds good to me." Sam said as she began scavenging ammo.

It was only after the sounds of battle had died down and they had peace and quiet that the two rebels could hear something faint coming from somewhere really close. Like someone was struggling against something. Carrying their new ammo and Imperial blasters, the two covered one another as they looked around for the source of this intrusion. It didn't take long for them to see what it was. Getting closer to the remains of the walker, there was someone inside banging on the roof near the hatch.

"Well I'll be damned," Sam said, "One of the drivers is still alive in there."

"Not for long, gimme a hand with the hatch." Dex said.

"Wait, we could use him!" Sam said.

"Yeah, as target practice." Dex replied coldly.

"I'm serious, we should question him." Sam said firmly.

Dex couldn't believe his friend. This guy was in the walker that tore through their ranks, killed Russ and Sinthro, and he expected to just walk free after all that? His hatred of the Empire was at an all time high, to him, these people were just killing machines for a cold, cruel Empire that took pleasure in squashing anyone they could fit under their boot. However, perhaps this one could tell them something useful.

"Let's see if he's in a talking mood first." Dex said.

Satisfied with this answer, Sam began to tug on the heavy hatch of the downed walker, and, with Dex's help, was able to pull the massive metal lid open entirely, revealing a lone survivor inside, a light skinned human male, about mid thirties, rather plain appearance with a terrified look on his face. These Imperials didn't look as intimidating when they were removed from their killing devices. Dex reached in and grabbed the unarmed pilot, dragging him out and tossing him hard onto the jungle floor.

"Must have thought it was your people who won just now," Dex taunted, "Sucks to be you."

"Just kill me and get it over with!" the pilot said without looking up at the rebels.

"Not until you tell us what we want to know." Dex said.

"What is this thing?" Sam asked.

"An AT-ST," the pilot said, "All Terrain Scout Transport. In a few days, it'll be mass produced from places just like this, you'll see them on every world that belongs to the Empire, maintaining peace and order, and you'll see them on the frontlines, cutting your people apart one by one."

"Yeah well it looks like it has some more work to be done to it before it's combat ready." Dex mocked, "As I'm sure you noticed, the hatch needs some work. Also, offense intended, it took one guy and a belt of thermal detonators to take it out."

"Yeah and did you count how many of your people we managed to take out in the process?" the pilot asked.

"Do you want to die?" Dex asked as he aimed his pistol.

"You're gonna kill me anyway, that's what you people do, you're animals, all of you." the pilot said.

"Dex, let's not prove him right. We can be better than that." Sam pleaded.

"This guy was in the walker that killed Sinthro and Russ," Dex noted, "Hell, he was gonna kill you! You're just gonna let that go?"

"What are we fighting for, Dex?" Sam asked.

"A better way of life, one without these people." Dex said.

"I don't think that's right," Sam said, "We need to destroy the Empire, but not every Imperial. It's not possible, and it's not right either."

"What the hell, Sam?" Dex said.

"That could have been me." Sam said, pointing at the pilot, "If rebels had attacked my station when I was in the Empire, I'd be in the same boat. It could have been me."

"But it isn't you. You know what we're fighting against." Dex said.

"If we kill every single one of these bucketheads when we don't have to, we're no better than them." Sam said sternly.

"So what are we gonna do with him? Take him with us?" Dex asked.

"I don't know." Sam admitted.

"You two aren't going anywhere!" the pilot shouted, "More are coming. You really think after today that you people have what it takes to beat us?"

"I believe it now more than I ever did before." Sam said, "What's your name?"

"Corporal Minn." the pilot said, "I outperformed all of my colleagues in training simulations, so they chose me to pilot the AT-ST in its first live fire demonstration on Ord Dalet."

"Lucky you," Dex said, "Look where that led you."

Once again, the all too familiar sound of approaching footsoldiers sent the birds fluttering away, alerting the rebels, who readied their weapons.

"Yeah," Minn said, "Well it looks like you're in the same boat as me."

"Tie him up..." Sam said, "We don't want him running off on us."

"I thought you'd never ask." Dex said as he pulled some rope from his utility belt.

"Oh come on." Minn said with disappointment.

"Hey it's either this..." Dex said as he started tying up the pilot, "Or I knock you out, you choice."

"Eh." Minn shrugged as he offered up his hands.

"While you do that," Sam began "I'm gonna set some traps."

After wrapping up the pilot's arms tightly, Dex then secured the restraints to the nearest tree, much to the dismay of Minn. Dex was still uneasy about keeping this guy alive, it's not like they could just let him go, could they? Sam appeared to have a good head on her shoulders, and Dex was learning more and more to trust her instincts, but he felt it fair to voice his concerns when they were valid. The Givin rebel managed to finish securing his prisoner just in time, it seemed the footsoldiers would be in sight any second, but something seemed different. There was something heavy on its way, nowhere near as big as the AT-ST they'd encountered before, but still, something that could take a licking and theoretically continue ticking.

Sam got back from setting her grenade traps right as the first soldiers stepped into view, followed by two AT-RTs, which laid suppressing fire on the rebel position and allowed the stormtroopers to advance. Having used up the last of their grenades for the traps, the two surviving rebels knew they were going to have to rely on their rifles, their wits, and a little bit of luck, especially considering this third wave of troops was a bit more dynamic with their strategy, and more pissed off too.

Sam took cover behind the biggest tree within their perimeter and gave Dex a nod, implying now was the time to return fire, taking potshots as fast as possible before the AT-RTs could take them out. The surprise offense seemed to work, as their shots nailed at least two Imperials each before being forced to take cover again. Dex could see that the prisoner was peeking around the tree, his only defense against the firefight.

"Get me away from these psychos!" Minn shouted to the stormtroopers.

"Get down, idiot!" Dex shouted.

Unexpectedly, the stormtroopers focused their fire towards the unarmed and restrained Minn, who ducked back into cover, but not before his sleeve caught a passing blaster shot, a deep singe mark left on it along with the searing pain.

"Holy shit!" Minn shouted, looking at his non-fatal wound, "Are they trying to kill me too?!"

"Just keep your head down!" Dex said.

"We've got this!" Sam agreed.

Thankfully, as if on cue, two of the wire-triggered grenade traps went off simultaneously, killing not only a handful of stormtroopers, but toppling over one of the AT-RTs, squishing an additional one in the process. Dex and Sam cheered at the top of their lungs as they both pressed on their attack, gunning down a few more soldiers who were attempting to flank.

"I'm gonna reposition!" Sam said.

"Alright but watch your crossfire!" Dex replied.

The deadly shootout going around them didn't seem to affect their coordination, it was like improv or a free flowing lyrical verse, a perfect machine that was designed to do one thing; survive. Initially, the horde of stormtroopers appeared to be quite daunting, yet with each passing moment, as their numbers thinned, the odds appeared to shift in favor of the weary rebels.

"You've got some at your ten o'clock!" Sam shouted.

"Thanks bud!" Dex said as he took out two flanking stormtroopers.

They just kept coming, relentless footsoldiers approaching in droves, but the two rebels could tell through the chaos that the Imperials had lost more than half of their troops in this third wave. With one lucky shot, Sam took out the driver of the second and last AT-RT, stopping the Imperial offense dead in its tracks. It didn't take long for the stormtroopers to realize their leverage was now completely gone, as they resorted to only using covering fire as they fled back towards their base down the hill. Dex took pot shots at the retreating soldiers, but Sam quickly intervened and pushed the barrel of his rifle aside.

"It's alright, we won." Sam said.

"We should finish them off." Dex replied.

"We should use this time to get the hell out of here." Sam said sternly.

"I gotta hand it to you, you guys make for one hell of a team..." Minn said, "I've never seen anything like it."

"If you're trying to butter us up, don't bother..." Dex said, "You're not out of the woods yet."

"How's your arm?" Sam asked.

"It's alright," Minn replied, "It stings really bad, but I don't think it's gonna kill me."

"I don't have any more bacta," Sam said, "I'm sorry."

"No it's okay," Minn said with a smile, "I'll make it. Thank you though. You'd really give me bacta if you had some?"

"Yeah," Sam replied, "Seems like the right thing to do."

"You two seem like good people, the Empire will treat you guys fair. You'll get a trial, and if you cooperate, you can get a much lighter sentence than you'd think." Minn said.

"Yeah right." Dex said.

"Hey, don't give me that!" Minn replied, "You rebels aren't exactly known for treating Imperial prisoners too kindly. There's no way you two are gonna get out of this jungle alive, unless you surrender. You two come out, hands up, with an unharmed prisoner by your side, they'll make sure you guys are safe." Minn offered.

"I can't surrender, not to the Empire, not after what they threatened to do to my people." Sam said, "But I also can't kill you, Minn, not if I don't have to."

"So what are we gonna do with him?" Dex asked.

"I'm not going with you. I'd rather take my chances with the Empire." Minn said sternly.

"They'll think you're compromised." Dex said.

"Tell them you chose your moment, you overpowered and killed us over by the native's territory, then made your way back to base." Sam said.

"Even if they decide to look in the native's territory, the natives could have moved the bodies." Dex added, "They'll probably buy it."

"Especially if you have one of our guns with you..." Sam said as she handed Minn a blaster pistol, "It doesn't have much in it, it should be enough to get you back to base if anything comes after you."

"You even think about using that on us," Dex warned, "It'll be more than a scrape on your sleeve that you have to worry about."

"You know how to get back from here?" Sam asked.

"I'll figure it out." Minn said, "Good luck, I guess."

"Thanks." Dex said as he cut the prisoner free, "You too. Get going."

With that, the prisoner, armed with the low-powered blaster pistol, holstered his new weapon and started walking down the hill, the long trek back to base. Only giving a brief look back at his strange new acquaintances, Minn had impressed Dex. He was the first truly human Imperial he had met, one who appeared to have a conscience and a real purpose, who just happened to be on the wrong side of the war. Dex wasn't sure whether or not someone like that would ever switch sides, but he did hope that wherever he ended up, he'd be okay.

"You were right about letting him go," Dex admitted, "I think there's a lot I can learn from you."

"Well we bought ourselves another day to fight," Sam said, "We'll figure it out as we go."

"Speaking of which," Dex said, "We'd better hit the road while we still have time. What do we do if Bevel isn't there?"

"The nearest spaceport is in Kavo," Sam said, "It's the only other charted area on the planet, it's about a three day hike from here."

"I'm willing to bet the Imps are already there just hoping we show up." Dex said as the two headed to where the backup landing zone had been scheduled.

Either the day to night cycles on this planet were really, really short, or time had just gone by really fast during all of those shootouts. The sun was already peeking through the trees up ahead, visible even through the thick jungle canopy. Sam must have noticed it too, rubbing her eyes of the dirt and grime that had naturally accumulated in this hostile environment they found themselves in. Everything was sore, their eyes, their feet, their hands and backs, their senses heightened to detect seemingly any potential threat that this place had to offer.

It seemed like they walked for years, but it was probably only about an hour or so of climbing through the brush, swamps, and generally nasty and unforgiving terrain. All without the disturbance of the Imperial troops. Had they given up? Maybe they figured they could just let the jungle do their job for them, kill off the two rebels in time, slowly. The more the tired Givin walked, the more he felt like they had probably thought of that as their best course of action.

Through the morning ambience of the jungle, the unmistakable sound of a ship's engine could be heard. The low, bassy humming of an old shuttle, contrasting quite clearly with the sounds of birds and primates. After stepping around a massive tree, it came into view, Bevel's old run down Sheathipede shuttle. He had disobeyed orders after all and stayed put. Russ would have been pissed, if he were still around to be so. An instant spark of energy sent the two battle-weary rebels sprinting towards the ship.

"Bevel!" Dex called out, "Get your ass out here!"

Almost instantly, the shuttle's ramp dropped down and slammed against the ground, probably due to a faulty spring, and out came Bevel, who appeared to have just woken up. The disheveled pilot's smile faded as he looked around for the rest of the team.

"Dex, where's everyone else?" Bevel asked.

Dex and Sam stopped in their tracks and looked at each other, then back at Bevel, who clearly understood the message.

"They're all dead?" Bevel realized.

"Yeah, it's just us." Sam said.

"I can't believe it..." Bevel said somberly, "Well... get in, I guess."

"Last we heard from you, Russ ordered you to take off." Dex said as they walked to the shuttle.

"I wasn't about to leave my team behind," Bevel said, "Especially Russ, he was a one of a kind soldier."

"He sure was," Sam noted, "He died a hero's death, trying to save the rest of us."

"He got you two back here," Bevel said as they boarded the ship, "Don't let that be in vain."

"We won't." Dex said.

Bevel headed into the cockpit to start up the rickety old ship, leaving Dex and Sam alone in the passenger area. Sitting across from each other, the two could finally relax. After everything they'd been through, the awful and painful seats on this ship didn't seem too bad. Dex reflected on what they'd lost, not just the battle, but the people, the soldiers who came together to fight a common enemy. The ones who gave their lives for their comrades, not knowing if their sacrifices would pay off or not. He thought they were much braver than him, and he lamented in knowing they wouldn't be able to part any of their knowledge and wisdom to him anymore. His hands were shaking, they never did that, not until today, he could still hear the sounds of battle and the screams of his dying comrades ringing in his ears, and he could see it when he closed his eyes.

"Does it ever get easier?" Dex asked.

"The fighting?" Sam asked, "Or losing people?"

"Both." Dex said.

"The fighting does, it becomes a part of you, for better or for worse..." Sam said, "Losing people is never easy. We'll be carrying that for the rest of our lives."

"Bummer." Dex joked, "What do we do now?"

"Would you want to meet Mon Mothma?" Sam offered, "She might seem kind of intimidating at first, but she's really cool, she'll like you."

"Sure." Dex said with a smile.

"Cool," Sam replied, "She's on Chandrila. That's where Ingram was going to take us after this mission."

Now with the motivation to continue the fight, Dex stood up and walked to the cockpit area, where Bevel was programming the ship's navicomputer as it began to rise up above the canopy.

"Bevel," Dex began "We're going-"

"I got it, I was totally eavesdropping..." Bevel said, "Chandrila it is."

Just as stealthily as it had entered the jungles of Ord Dalet, the shuttle took off, far away from the trees and out of the atmosphere, thankfully undetected in its efforts. Even if he felt like a part of him would never truly leave Ord Dalet, he took solace in knowing it would not be the end of the Ghost. There were other rebels to meet, other people that needed his help, and the fight wasn't over, not even close. His debt to the rebellion unpaid, and his new friendship with Sam still so new to him, he tried his best to look forward to the future, where he could really make a difference, like he always wanted and like his father knew he could.

**Thanks for reading! This isn't the last we'll be seeing of Dex Romo and Sam Saavedra. They're two pieces of a much larger story that I'm currently putting together, it'll tie in with all of the Star Wars stories I've written so far (and some more that I plan to write), so keep an eye out for that!**


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